Piyush Goyal and US trade representative begin talks on bilateral trade pact

Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal and US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer began discussions in New Delhi on the first phase of the India-US trade agreement. The talks come amid changes in the US tariff regime and efforts to finalise an interim trade framework

New Delhi: Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal and US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer on Tuesday began bilateral talks here on issues related to the first phase of the bilateral trade agreement.

Greer is in New Delhi on an official visit for the trade pact talks, an official said.

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Commerce Secretary Rajesh Agrawal and India’s Chief Negotiator Darpan Jain, who is also Additional Secretary in the Department of Commerce, are attending the meeting, which is underway at Vanijya Bhawan, the headquarters of the Commerce and Industry Ministry.

The meeting followed chief negotiator-level discussions on the pact held in the national capital earlier this month (June 2-4).

Agrawal on June 15 stated that the discussions between the two ministers were expected to be centred on giving final touches to the framework deal.

On June 17, US President Donald Trump said that the two countries were “very close” to finalising the trade agreement.

Earlier, on June 5, Goyal said India and the US were moving towards closing all the open ends of the interim trade agreement, and both sides were likely to execute the “very, very vibrant” first phase of the BTA by the middle of next month.

Both sides in February announced the contours, or framework, of the first phase of the Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA). The framework was based on the 50 per cent tariffs imposed by the US on Indian goods. However, on February 20, the US Supreme Court struck down the sweeping tariffs imposed by the Trump administration.

Following that, the Trump administration announced 10 per cent tariffs under Section 122 of the Trade Act on all countries for 150 days on February 24. The measure will expire on July 24 this year.

The meeting between the two sides is important in view of these changes in the US tariff regime.

India and the United States formally launched BTA negotiations on February 13, 2025. On February 7, 2026, the two sides announced that they had reached a framework for an interim agreement regarding reciprocal and mutually beneficial trade.

According to that framework, the US had agreed to reduce tariffs on India to 18 per cent from 50 per cent. It had removed the 25 per cent tariffs on Indian goods imposed for buying Russian oil and was to cut the remaining 25 per cent to 18 per cent under the pact. However, the US Supreme Court ruled against these tariffs.

Under the agreed framework, India proposed to eliminate or reduce tariffs on all US industrial goods and a wide range of food and agricultural products, including Dried Distillers’ Grains (DDGs), red sorghum for animal feed, tree nuts, fresh and processed fruit, soybean oil, wine and spirits, and additional products.

New Delhi has also expressed its intention to purchase USD 500 billion worth of US energy products, aircraft and aircraft parts, precious metals, technology products and coking coal over the next five years.

As the tariff landscape changed in the US, both sides are relooking at the framework of the agreement.

The February joint statement on the framework has a clause that, in the event of any changes to the agreed tariffs of either country, the US and India agree that the other country may modify its commitments.

Meanwhile, the US Trade Representative launched two Section 301 investigations on March 11 and 12 covering about 60 economies. One focused on alleged excess industrial capacity, while the other examined forced labour concerns in global supply chains. India was included in both investigations.

When the framework of the first phase of the agreement was finalised, India had a comparative advantage over competing countries such as ASEAN nations (Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, the Philippines, Brunei, Vietnam, Laos, Myanmar and Cambodia), Sri Lanka, Pakistan and Bangladesh.

Under the framework, the US had announced an 18 per cent tariff on Indian goods. At that time, tariffs on India’s competing countries ranged from 19 per cent to 20 per cent. But now, all countries face the same 10 per cent additional levy.

It is now important that India secures an advantage over its competitor nations on the tariff front in the trade pact with the US.

The US was India’s second-largest trading partner in 2025-26.

India’s outbound shipments to the US grew marginally by 0.92 per cent to USD 87.3 billion during the last fiscal year, while imports increased 15.95 per cent to USD 52.9 billion. The trade surplus declined to USD 34.4 billion in 2025-26 from USD 40.89 billion in 2024-25.