India's foreign minister said most issues in a proposed trade agreement with the United States are settled, while tariff details remain under review with jobs and livelihoods at stake.
A Feb. 6 joint statement set out a framework for an interim agreement and specified an 18% reciprocal tariff rate for certain Indian-origin goods. It said the United States would remove the reciprocal tariff on a wider range of goods if the interim agreement were successfully concluded. India said it would reduce or eliminate tariffs on U.S. industrial goods and some food and agricultural products. The framework addressed tariff treatment in both directions, while wider U.S. relief remained conditional on completing the interim agreement.
The statement described the February framework as an interim arrangement and separately reaffirmed talks on a broader bilateral trade agreement. President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched those negotiations on Feb. 13, 2025. The statement did not announce completion of the broader pact.
Hindustan Times reported that at its Leadership Summit on Nov. 14, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar described negotiations as being in “the last stretch” and said most issues had been sorted out. In many cases, he said, more changes had come from the U.S. side, leaving fewer concerns on India's side. He did not identify the specific issues still under discussion, the outlet reported.
Jaishankar said India was reviewing tariff provisions one at a time because the decisions affect jobs and livelihoods. He said India wanted a balanced, beneficial agreement that would improve its competitive position relative to comparable economies.
Jaishankar gave no date for signing, Hindustan Times reported. NDTV Profit reported speculation that an announcement could follow a meeting between Modi and Trump at the December G20 summit; neither the summit remarks nor the February joint statement confirmed that timetable.
