India-US trade deal: Union Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal on Thursday said that New Delhi and Washington DC will sign a joint statement on the India-US trade deal in four to five days.
The countries will also release the legal text of the first tranche of the India-US trade deal, under which US President Donald Trump had earlier announced a significant tariff reduction for New Delhi.
“The first tranche of the bilateral trade Agreement is almost ready. We hope to sign a joint statement in the next 4-5 days. After the joint statement there will be a formal agreement which will be signed around mid March,” Goyal told reporters on the day.
Following the signing of the joint statement, the US will issue an executive order to reduce the tariff to 18%, Piyush Goyal noted.
Commerce Secretary Rajesh Agrawal was also addressing the press conference to clarifiy the technicalities of the deal. He said that the joint statement needed to be converted to a legal agreement.
“This legal agreement will give us the authority to reduce our tariffs... Their tariffs are executive tariffs. Our tariffs are MFN tariffs. Our MFN tariff reduction can only take effect after the legal agreement has been signed,” Agrawal said.
Earlier on Thursday, US Ambassador to India Sergio Gor posted two pictures of EAM Jaishankar meeting with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Secretary Marco Rubio.
“Engagement at the highest levels is currently happening. The United States is ready to elevate this relationship even further. Limitless Potential! ”he wrote.
India-US trade deal
On 2 February, a phone call between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US President Donald Trump sealed the long-pending trade deal between Indian and the United States.
In a post on X, PM Modi confirmed that the US had agreed to reduce the export tariffs on India to 18%.
India currently pays US tariffs amounting to 50%, with 25% of it for buying Russian oil.
It is not yet clarified whether the US tariffs on India will come down to 18% from 50%, or if the 25% Russian oil penalty will still remain.
In a separate post on Truth Social, Trump announced that India had agreed to reduce its tariffs on US products to zero.
Addressing concerns raised by some members in the Lok Sabha, Goyal said, "Negotiators from both sides have been at various levels over the past year. During the negotiations, both sides safeguarded their important and sensitive sectors from the trade deal, at the same time ensuring maximum benefits for both countries."
During these negotiations, Goyal said the Indian side secured protection for its sensitive sectors, particularly agriculture and dairy."There were sectors which were important and sensitive from the US point of view. After negotiations for nearly a year, both sides have been successful in finalizing several areas of the bilateral trade agreement," he said, speaking in the Lok Sabha.
