India, US to Begin Four Day Trade Talks Amid Changing Tariff Regime

The chief negotiators from the US and India are meeting in New Delhi for four-day talks starting from June 1 to finalise the details of the interim trade pact, whose framework was agreed upon in February 2026.

The US team will be led by its chief negotiator Brendan Lynch. India's chief negotiator is Darpan Jain, who is an additional secretary in the Department of Commerce.

The two sides are "proposed to finalise the details of the interim agreement and take forward the negotiations under the broader BTA on multiple areas such as market access, non-tariff measures, customs and trade facilitation, investment promotion, and economic security alignment," the commerce ministry has said.

On February 7, India and the US issued a joint statement finalising the contours or framework of the first phase of the bilateral trade agreement (BTA) or an interim trade agreement. Now, both sides will have to finalise the legal text for that deal.

The framework reaffirmed the countries' commitment to the broader India-US BTA negotiations.

Why Deal Matters

According to that framework, the US had agreed to reduce tariffs on India to 18% from 50%. It had removed the 25% tariffs on Indian goods for buying Russian oil and was to cut the remaining 25% to 18% under the pact.

However, on February 20 this year, the US Supreme Court ruled against President Donald Trump's sweeping reciprocal tariffs, which were imposed under the 1977 International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA).

After that, the US President announced the imposition of 10% tariffs on all countries for 150 days, starting February 24.

In light of these changes, a meeting between the chief negotiators of India and the US scheduled for February was postponed. The two sides then met in Washington in April, when the Indian team, headed by Jain, visited America from April 20-23, 2026.

Trade Talks Resume

As US tariff policy changes and legal rulings modify the original framework agreed between the two countries, both sides are expected to negotiate tariff concessions, market access and investment-related issues while reassessing earlier commitments.

In February 2025, both sides agreed on a framework covering tariff reductions, market access, customs facilitation and economic cooperation. The current negotiations seek to convert that framework into a legally binding agreement while addressing subsequent changes in US trade policy.