Foreign Media: India and the US May Reach a Temporary Trade Agreement This Week
According to Reuters, citing two informed sources, India and the US may reach a temporary trade agreement as early as this week.
The report said, "To avoid tariffs, India will reach a temporary trade agreement with the US as early as this week."
The news indicates that this agreement will be the first step for Washington and New Delhi toward achieving a comprehensive bilateral agreement.
According to Reuters, India has agreed to increase its imports of natural gas from the US to reduce the trade surplus. The trade surplus for the fiscal year 2024-25 was $41.2 billion.
The report pointed out that the agreement is expected to allow the US to remove tariffs on Indian agricultural products, especially wheat and dairy products.
According to the information, both sides have agreed to lower tariffs on thousands of goods.
On April 2, US President Trump signed an executive order imposing "reciprocal tariffs" on imported goods from other countries. The minimum benchmark tax rate is 10%, while higher tariff rates will apply to goods from 57 countries starting April 9. The US explained that this is calculated based on the trade deficit between the US and specific countries, aiming to replace the deficit with balance. However, on April 9, Trump stated that more than 75 countries did not take retaliatory measures and requested negotiations, so within 90 days, all countries except China will be subject to a 10% benchmark import tariff.
On early March, India's Foreign Ministry spokesperson Randeep Suri stated that India expects to resolve tariff issues with the US within the framework of future trade agreements. The two countries have set a goal to complete the first phase of work by September to October this year, aiming to double the bilateral trade volume from the current $191 billion to over $500 billion by 2030.
Original article: https://www.toutiao.com/article/1836491427258432/
Statement: This article represents the views of the author himself.