India has swiftly dismissed U.S. President Donald Trump’s claim that New Delhi has agreed to remove tariffs on all American imports. Indian External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar clarified in a statement to local media that trade negotiations are still ongoing and no agreement has been finalized.
Trump had earlier told reporters that India had proposed a deal under which it would import American goods without imposing significant tariffs. However, Jaishankar rebutted this, stating, “Discussions are underway. Until everything is finalized, nothing is finalized.”
According to a BBC report, India and the United States are in active talks over a potential trade agreement. Jaishankar emphasized that any such deal must be mutually beneficial and effective for both countries. “That is our expectation from any trade agreement. Judging before it’s concluded would be premature,” he told the press.
The dispute intensified after Trump made his comments at a business event in Doha, where he also announced multiple deals with Qatar, including for Boeing jets. During the event, Trump criticized India’s high tariff rates and mentioned that he had told Apple CEO Tim Cook he didn’t want Apple to shift production to India, calling it one of the world’s highest tariff-imposing countries.
“They’ve offered us a deal with almost zero tariffs,” Trump said, referencing India. “I told Tim, ‘We’ve treated you well. You’ve built factories in China for years—we tolerated that. But we’re not interested in your factories in India. Let them manage themselves.’”
Earlier this month, Apple reported plans to shift most of its iPhone production from China to India, while moving iPad and Apple Watch manufacturing to Vietnam.
Back in April, Trump imposed tariffs of up to 27% on Indian goods. With the 90-day tariff suspension period set to expire on July 9, India has been actively seeking a trade agreement to avoid further damage.
Meanwhile, the U.S. and China have agreed to lower tariffs on each other’s goods—U.S. tariffs on Chinese products will drop from 145% to 30%, and China will reduce duties on certain American goods from 125% to 10%.
Despite already reducing tariffs on several U.S. products like bourbon whiskey and motorcycles, India still runs a $45 billion trade deficit with the United States. Trump has repeatedly blamed India’s high import duties for this imbalance.
Ajay Srivastava, a New Delhi-based trade analyst, suggests India could adopt a “zero-for-zero” approach by eliminating tariffs on 90% of U.S. exports from day one, excluding sensitive items like automobiles and agricultural products. However, he stressed that any deal must ensure reciprocal benefits so both nations reduce tariffs at an equal pace.
Although India has traditionally been cautious about free trade deals, it has recently shown renewed interest. Last week, it signed a significant agreement with the UK, reducing tariffs in protected sectors like cars and whiskey. In 2023, India concluded a $100 billion free trade agreement with the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) after 16 years of talks.
India and the European Union are also working toward finalizing a trade deal within this year.
Despite ambitions set by both Trump and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to grow bilateral trade to $500 billion, India is unlikely to make concessions in politically sensitive areas like agriculture.
Source : The Daily Ittefaq
