India, US to Ink Interim Trade Pact in March; Operational by April

New Delhi: The much-anticipated India-US interim trade deal is expected to be finalised in the month of April this year. As per the schedule, US Trade Representative (USTR) Jamieson Greer is also likely to visit India in March in this context. Under the pact, both sides would extend duty concessions to each other on a number of goods traded between them, the government said on Friday.

Confirming the deal, US Ambassador Sergio Gor said in an event at the AI Impact Summit here that the India-US trade deal is set to be inked soon. While at the same time, India’s trade minister Piyush Goyal also told reporters that an interim trade agreement between India and the US is likely to be signed in March and operationalised in April.

Earlier this month, India and the US released a joint statement announcing a framework for an interim trade agreement. To finalise the text of the first phase of the bilateral trade agreement, the chief negotiators of the two countries will meet in Washington next week. The three-day meeting between the two teams will begin on February 23.

India on Friday joined the US-led strategic alliance Pax Silica aimed at building a resilient supply chain for critical minerals. “From the trade deal to Pax Silica to defence cooperation, the potential for our two nations to work together is truly limitless,” Gor said in his remarks.

The joint statement, released separately by the two nations earlier this month, lays down the contours of the deal. These now need to be translated into a legal agreement, for which the two sides will meet next week. Headed by chief negotiator Darpan Jain, who is a joint secretary in the commerce ministry, will lead the Indian team to the US.

While speaking at the launch of seven components of the Rs 25,060-crore export promotion mission (EPM), Goyal said the India-US trade agreement has opened huge business opportunities for Indian exporters. “India has protected all the sensitive sectors, including agriculture. Now once that rate (50 per cent tariff) comes out to lower than any of our competitors, we are lower than anybody else who is an emerging market or a developing economy, and plus having safeguarded all the sensitive sectors, it's a great win-win solution for both countries,” he said.

According to the joint statement, India has expressed its intention to purchase $500 billion of US energy products, aircraft and aircraft parts, precious metals, technology products and coking coal over the next five years. The reciprocal tariffs on India are now among the lowest compared to its competitor nations.