India-US Trade Deal: Piyush Goyal To Hold Bilateral Meeting With US During G20 Meet Sept-end

New Delhi: Commerce and industry minister Piyush Goyal will visit the US at the end of this month to participate in the G20 trade ministerial meet in Milwaukee, and he is expected to hold a bilateral meeting with US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, a top ministry official said on Tuesday.

The two-day ministerial meeting will begin on September 30. The US holds the 2026 G20 presidency. “We expect that during the visit to the US, there will definitely be bilateral meetings between the ministers. Bilateral is in the offing. Once it is worked out, we will let you know,” commerce secretary Rajesh Agarwal said.

“And whenever the bilateral takes place, I think all issues, trade issues between India and the US, will be discussed. And even the ongoing free trade agreement (FTA) negotiations and the way forward on that will definitely be on the agenda for discussion,” the secretary said.

The G20, or Group of Twenty, is an international forum that brings together the world's major advanced and emerging economies to discuss and coordinate economic policy. Goyal's visit to the US is important as the two countries are negotiating a bilateral trade agreement (BTA).

On India-EU FTA, Agarwal also said that the trade pact is expected to be signed before the end of this year. “The European Commission has sent the pact to the European Council for approval. After that, it will be signed. We expect to sign it before the end of this year. That is our expectation,” he said.

“After signing the deal, it goes to the European Parliament for approval and ratification. And that process takes a bit of time, but we hope that will also be done. I think as far as the process is concerned, till now this is the fastest that is happening in terms of signing and ratification,” he added.