The government is hoping to complete the first tranche of bilateral trade agreement (BTA) talks with the United States before the September-October deadline in order to use the 90-day window, which the US government has given to its trading partners for imposition of reciprocal tariff, sources in the government said.
“The September–October timeline is a deadline, not a target. If negotiations can be concluded earlier, it will benefit both countries. We are aiming to accelerate talks to avoid any adverse outcomes when the pause ends,” says a Commerce Ministry official, who refused to be quoted.
He further said that the 90-day pause in reciprocal tariffs is not country-specific, but the government is hopeful to complete negotiations before that deadline. “Talks are progressing positively, and India remains committed to trade liberalisation,” he added. India is the first country to start negotiations on trade and investment partnership with the US, preempting harsh tariff measures to be taken by the Donald Trump government.
The commerce ministry has said both the countries have signed the terms of reference for the BTA. As per ministry officials, virtual negotiations will begin this week, with physical rounds expected in the first week of May.
The US government has announced a 26% reciprocal tariff on India, which has been put on hold for 90 days. The ilateral trade agreement targets $500 billion trade between the two countries. Currently, the total trade between two countries is $200 billion.
Meanwhile, the government has formed an inter-ministerial committee for import surge monitoring set up with representation from the Department of Commerce, Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT), department of customs and Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) to keep a check on likely dumping by countries like China, Vietnam and Indonesia.
According to the officials, a recent assessment by the ministry has highlighted the risk of merchandise dumping into India due to reciprocal tariffs. “Rising US costs may prompt exporters from countries like China, Vietnam and Indonesia to divert goods to India, potentially triggering import surge,” said an official from the commerce ministry. The government also fears that Chinese retaliatory tariffs on US goods could further increase the US agricultural products.