Glitch in trade ties temporary
NEW DELHI, Aug 27:
Communication channels between India and the US are open to resolve the ongoing tariff issues, and the glitch in trade ties is only temporary, given the long-term relationship between the two nations, Government sources said on Wednesday.
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The US’s 50 per cent tariffs on Indian exports to America came into effect from August 27, barring a few sectors.
According to the sources, there is no need for panic for exporters as the impact of these high tariffs are unlikely to be as severe as feared given the diversified nature of Indian exports.
They added that India’s exports to the US during the first four months of this fiscal year has risen 21.64 per cent to USD 33.53 billion.
Going by the trend, the exports may touch the last year’s figure (USD 86.5 billion), one of the sources said.
“Communication channels are open between India and the US to resolve the ongoing tariff issues… it is a temporary phase in a long-term relationship,” they said.
Meanwhile, in an interview with Fox Business, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has described the India-US relationship as “very complicated” but hoped that “at the end of the day, we will come together”.
“This is a very complicated relationship. President (Donald) Trump or Prime Minister (Narendra) Modi have very good relationships at that level. And it’s not just over the Russian oil,” Bessent said.
His comments came hours after the additional 25 per cent penalty imposed by Trump on India for its purchases of Russian oil came into effect from August 27, bringing the total amount of levies on New Delhi to 50 per cent.
Sources added that there are positive signals coming from both sides and “we need to build upon that”.
They also said the Government is working on measures to insulate domestic exporters from the impact of the US tariffs.
The Commerce ministry is holding a series of stakeholder consultations this week from sectors such as chemicals, gems and jewellery to discuss ways to push India’s exports in new markets.
Work is also progressing fast on the formulation of the Export Promotion Mission, announced in the Budget for 2025-26.
“In the next 2-3 days, the Ministry will meet stakeholders on the diversification of exports,” an official said.
The steep 50 per cent tariff on Indian goods entering the US, which came into effect from August 27, will impact India’s exports worth more than USD 48 billion to America. (PTI)
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