India–US Trade Agreement Signing to Happen ‘Very Soon,’ Says Sergio Gor

US Ambassador to India Sergio Gor on Friday said that the signing of the trade agreement between Washington and New Delhi will take place ‘very soon.’ Gor also hinted that US reciprocal tariff rebalancing measures to 18% would move forward shortly, highlighting that the process would not be driven by a single executive order, reports said.

In a select media interaction, Gor said that continued negotiations were nearing closure on both sides. “The reality is there are tens of thousands of points. We're not dealing with a small country,” Gor said. “This is one of the biggest economies. And so, we're thrilled that the interim deal is done. We have a few tweaking points left to address, but it's done. So, the signing will happen soon.”

He also stated that any tariff rebalancing measures would involve multiple policy mechanisms.

Further, Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said that the interim trade agreement (ITA) between India and the US would likely be operationalised in April.

Commerce Secretary Rajesh Agarwal had earlier hinted that the ITA would likely conclude by March. “An Indian delegation led by the chief negotiator will visit the US next week to carry forward the discussions. Work is currently underway to convert the joint understanding into legally binding language,” Agarwal said on Monday.

In early February, US President Donald Trump announced the conclusion of the first tranche of ITA talks and rolled back the reciprocal tariffs from 50% to 18%. The 25% punitive tariff over India’s oil purchases from Russia has also been eliminated, claiming New Delhi’s agreement to halt crude purchases from Moscow. However, India has neither confirmed nor denied the claim.

Addressing India’s Russian oil purchase commitments, Gor said New Delhi is working to diversify its oil sources. According to a report by Reuters, Gor stated that India and the US are in active negotiations over the sale of Venezuelan oil to India. He said that the US Department of Energy is speaking with India’s Ministry of Energy and is “hoping to have some good news on that very soon.”

“On the oil, there’s an agreement… We have seen India diversify its oil sources. There is a commitment. This is not about India. The United States doesn’t want anyone buying Russian oil,” Gor said.

Separately, Moscow’s envoy in New Delhi, Denis Alipov, said Russia continues to be India’s largest oil supplier. A Russian foreign ministry spokesperson earlier said that India’s oil purchases ensure global energy security.

Bilateral goods trade between India and the US stood at $116.39 billion during April–January. India recorded a trade surplus of $28.53 billion.