India studying opportunities that may arise from new US trade policy: Commerce Ministry

ANI April 3, 2025 240 views

The Indian Commerce Ministry is meticulously examining the recent US executive order on reciprocal tariffs, which imposes additional duties ranging from 10% to 50%. Despite the potential challenges, India remains committed to its ambitious bilateral trade goal of reaching $500 billion by 2030. The government is actively engaging with stakeholders and studying potential opportunities arising from the new trade policy. Ongoing discussions between Indian and US trade teams aim to develop a comprehensive, mutually beneficial trade agreement that supports both nations' economic interests.

"Keeping in view the vision of Viksit Bharat, the Department is engaged with all stakeholders" - Commerce Ministry
New Delhi, April 3: Faced with US President Donald Trump's reciprocal tariffs, India on Thursday said that it is studying the opportunities that may arise from this new development in US trade policy.

Key Points

1

India assessing 27% additional US tariff implications

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Bilateral trade target of $500 billion by 2030 remains active

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Ongoing discussions for mutually beneficial trade agreement

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COMPACT partnership continues to drive strategic collaboration

The Ministry of Commerce said in a statement that it is carefully examining the implications of the various measures and announcements made by the US administration.

"The US President issued an Executive Order on Reciprocal Tariffs imposing additional ad-valorem duties ranging from 10% to 50% on imports from all trading partners. The baseline duty of 10% will be effective from April 05, 2025, and the remaining country-specific additional ad valorem duty will be effective from April 09, 2025. The additional duty on India, as per Annex I of the Executive Order, is 27%," the Ministry said.

"The Department of Commerce is carefully examining the implications of the various measures/announcements made by the President of the USA. Keeping in view the vision of Viksit Bharat, the Department is engaged with all stakeholders, including the Indian industry and exporters, taking feedback of their assessment of the tariffs and assessing the situation. The Department is also studying the opportunities that may arise due to this new development in the US trade policy," the Ministry added.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US President Donald Trump had announced 'Mission 500' on February 13, 2025, aiming to more than double bilateral trade to USD 500 billion by 2030.

"Accordingly, discussions are ongoing between Indian and US trade teams for the expeditious conclusion of a mutually beneficial, multi-sectoral Bilateral Trade Agreement," the commerce department said in its statement today. These cover a wide range of issues of mutual interest, including deepening supply chain integration.

"The ongoing talks are focused on enabling both nations to grow trade, investments and technology transfers. We remain in touch with the Trump Administration on these issues and expect to take them forward in the coming days," the statement added.

The commerce ministry said India values its Comprehensive Global Strategic Partnership with the United States and is committed to working closely with the US to implement the India-US 'Catalysing Opportunities for Military Partnership, Accelerated Commerce and Technology' (COMPACT) for the 21st century to ensure that the trade ties remain a pillar of mutual prosperity and drive transformative change for the benefit of the people of India and the US.

Since assuming office for his second term, President Trump has reiterated his stance on tariff reciprocity, emphasising that the United States will match tariffs imposed by other countries, including India, to ensure fair trade.

Reader Comments

R
Rahul K.
Interesting development! Hope our negotiators can turn this into an opportunity for Indian exporters. The 27% additional duty seems steep though 😬
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Priya M.
Finally some proactive response from our Commerce Ministry! Studying opportunities is good, but we need quick action plans to protect our industries.
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Amit S.
The 'Mission 500' target seems ambitious with these new tariffs. Maybe we should focus more on diversifying our trade partners rather than depending so much on US market?
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Sunita R.
As someone in the textile export business, I'm really worried about these new tariffs. Hope the government comes up with some support measures soon 🙏
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Vikram P.
Respectfully, I think our trade policy needs to be more assertive. Studying opportunities is fine, but we should also consider reciprocal measures if needed. The COMPACT agreement sounds promising though!
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Neha T.
The tech transfer part sounds exciting! Maybe this challenge will push us to innovate more in our manufacturing sector 💡

We welcome thoughtful discussions from our readers. Please keep comments respectful and on-topic.

Tags:
US Trade Policy Donald Trump Narendra Modi Reciprocal Tariffs India-US Relations Bilateral Trade Commerce Ministry
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