US President Donald Trump on Wednesday announced a 26 per cent reciprocal tariff on Indian imports to the United States. The move is a part of Trump’s far-reaching new tariffs on nearly all US trading partners. Announcing the tariff decision, Trump once again underlined the special equation he has with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Modi Is A Great Friend: Trump
Highlighting his relationship with India’s PM, Trump said, “India very, very tough. The Prime Minister just left and is a great friend of mine, but you are not treating us right. They charge us 52 per cent and we charge them almost nothing.” Listing what the US labels “high tariffs” charged by India on American products, Trump also declared a 26 per cent "discounted" reciprocal tariff on India.
India Analysing Impact
Meanwhile, India’s Commerce Ministry is analysing the impact of 26 per cent reciprocal tariffs or import duties imposed by the US on India, a senior government official told PTI on Thursday. According to the official, the universal 10 per cent tariffs will come into effect on all imports into the US from April 5 and the remaining 16 per cent from April 10. The official who called the US reciprocal tariff announcement “a mixed bag” added that the Commerce Ministry was analysing the impact of the announced tariffs. He also added that there was a provision that if a country would address the concerns of the US, the Trump administration can consider reducing the duties against that nation.
India is already negotiating a bilateral trade agreement with the US. The two countries are aiming to finalise the first phase of the sgreement by fall (September-October) of 2025. Speaking at an event in Delhi recently, Exernal Affairs Minister Dr. S Jaishankar had said that the two sides were holding “active and intense” discussions on trade.
(Inputs From PTI)
