US Team to Visit India Next Week for Trade Talks; All Eyes on a Finalised Trade Deal

A team of trade negotiators from Washington, led by Deputy US Trade Representative Rick Switzer, is likely to visit India next week to resume the ongoing trade talks, which have entered the final stages, according to officials.

New Delhi has been keen on winding up the India–US trade deal, which has entered the final stages of negotiation, and rolling back the punitive tariff of 25% completely, while also reducing the reciprocal tariffs to 15–16% from the current 25%. “We are very optimistic and hopeful that we should find some solution this calendar year,” Commerce Secretary Rajesh Agarwal said last week. “What needs to come out first is a framework trade deal which is able to address the reciprocal tariffs.”

In an attempt to curb Russia’s oil revenue, US President Donald Trump imposed an additional punitive tariff of 25% on India, Russia’s second-largest oil buyer, which pushed total tariffs on India to 50%. Since then, Indian refiners have scaled back their imports from Russia as pressures and threats of additional sanctions mounted from the US and its Western allies.

The scaling-back of oil imports from Moscow has opened the door for potential tariff relief, media reports said. As per a report by the Global Trade and Research Initiative, India should first push for the complete rollback of the punitive tariff, as even Trump has claimed that India has limited its Russian energy purchases.

Last month, Trump said he would lower import duties on Indian goods “at some point” as the two sides were getting close to finalising a trade agreement. India and US envoys have conducted multiple rounds of trade talks, and officials have expressed cautious optimism that a deal is nearing, reports said.

Both New Delhi and Washington are working on a pact in multiple tranches, with the first phase aimed at addressing the reciprocal tariffs. “We are very close; we have tried to iron out most issues,” Agarwal said. “The two countries have to find the right landing zone to announce the deal,” he said about the framework agreement. However, the broader India–US bilateral trade agreement will “take some time,” albeit discussions are happening alongside.