India is keeping all options open in its ongoing negotiations with the United States, including the possibility of an interim trade deal before the August 1 deadline, government sources said.The talks are part of a broader bilateral trade agreement (BTA) currently under discussion. India and the US teams concluded the fifth round of talks for the agreement last week in Washington.
India’s chief negotiator Rajesh Agrawal and Brendan Lynch, Assistant US Trade Representative for South and Central Asia, led discussions that focused on agriculture, automobiles, non-market economies, and SCOMET (Special Chemicals, Organisms, Materials, Equipment, and Technologies).
Both countries are looking at finalising the first tranche of the proposed bilateral trade agreement by fall (September-October).
The Trump administration had announced reciprocal duties on several trading partners in April but delayed implementation first to July 9 and then to August 1 as talks continued.While India is not on the initial list of countries facing new US tariffs – unlike the Philippines, Brunei, Moldova, Algeria, Libya, Iraq, and Sri Lanka – officials say uncertainty remains if Washington will extend the deadline should the negotiations fail to produce an interim deal in time.New Delhi is seeking removal of the additional 26% duties and easing of levies on steel, aluminium, and autos. The US, meanwhile, is pushing for tariff concessions on industrial goods, electric vehicles, wines, petrochemicals, agricultural products, dairy, apples, tree nuts, and genetically modified crops.India’s merchandise exports to the US rose 22.8% to $25.51 billion in April-June, while imports increased 11.68% to $12.86 billion.(Edited by : Poonam Behura)
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