India,United States closing in on first phase of interim trade deal by mid-July,says Piyush Goyal, India's Commerce and Industry Minister. Goyal announced Friday a U.S . team was in New Delhi from June 2 to June 4 hashing out pact details, aiming to boost trade ties .
Goyal optimistic on talks: "We are fast moving towards closing all the open ends." First tranche would give India preferential access to U.S. markets,improving its competitive edge.
U.S. team,led by chief negotiator Brendan Lynch, held constructive talks with Indian counterparts like Darpan Jain,additional secretary in Commerce Dept. Discussions spanned goods trade, customs facilitation,economic security alignment.
Back in February, both countries laid out framework for first phase of trade pact. U.S. pledged to cut tariffs on Indian goods from 50% to 18%. Also scrapped 25% tariff on Indian products linked to Russian oil, lowering remaining 25% to 18% as part of the deal.
But landscape changed when U.S. Supreme Court struck down ex-President Trump's reciprocal tariffs under International Emergency Economic Powers Act. Biden administration then announced 10% tariff on all countries, lasting 150 days from February 24,2026. This shift sparked more talks,with Indian officials visiting Washington in April.
As interim deal nears completion,evolving tariff scene might require pact tweaks . Framework allows modifications if countries alter tariff commitments. India suggests cutting tariffs on U.S. industrial,agricultural goods like dried distillers' grains, tree nuts, soybean oil.
India also plans to buy $500 billion in U.S. energy, aircraft,technology over five years. Ambitious . Aims to strengthen economic links with U.S., especially against rivals like Sri Lanka,Pakistan, Bangladesh.
As talks proceed,U.S. Trade Rep (USTR) has launched Section 301 probes into several countries, India included,on forced labor in supply chains. On June 2,USTR proposed 12.5% tariffs on 54 countries for not banning forced labor imports. Proposal still under review,hearings set for July 7.
In fiscal year 2025-26, U.S. was India's second-largest trading partner. India's exports to U.S. edged up 0.92% to $87.3 billion, imports jumped 15.95% to $52.9 billion . India's trade surplus with U.S. shrank to $34.4 billion from $40.89 billion prior year…
