US-India Likely to Sign Their First Trade Deal, Awaits China's Call

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent stated that many of the trade partners are "very good" proposals to avert "reciprocal tariffs", but the US is likely to sign one of its first deals with India. He also asserted that during Vice President JD Vance's visit to India, trade talks between two nations made significant process.

"I would guess that India would be one of the first trade deals we would sign," Bessent said during an interaction with CNBC. "Vice President Vance was in India last week, talked about substantial progress," he added.

Bessent also mentioned that the US held substantial discussions with its other Asian trading partners. "I have mentioned that the negotiations with the Republic of Korea have gone very well, and I think we've had some very substantial negotiations with our Japanese allies," he added.

Reuters reported that speaking to reporters after two early morning television interviews, Besssent said the first such trade agreement might come this week or next.

Notably, India is the first nation to finalise the Terms of Reference (ToRs) to lay down a roadmap for the negotiations on reciprocal trade right after Vance's meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi last week.

US-China Talks

Addressing the simmering tension between the US and China, Bessent said that China's recent exemption of certain US goods from its tariffs list signaled at China's intention to de-escalate the ongoing trade retaliation. He said that the US had also refrained from escalating by embargoing those goods.

"We'll see what happens with China. It's important. I think it's unsustainable from the Chinese side. So maybe they'll call me one day," said Bessent on the US' plans to get in discussion with China.

Earlier, while China demanded respect and equality as a prerequisite to hold any trade talks, Trump said that he expects China to make the first call.

Recently, China has denied holding trade negotiations with the US after American President Donald Trump claimed that he received a call from Chinese President Xi Jinping.

A few experts also believe that this prolonged tension between the US and China could be profitable for India, as it has been very proactively engaging with the US since the beginning.