Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said on Thursday that discussions between India and the US on a proposed trade deal are continuing. He expressed optimism that the two countries would seek to reach a fair and balanced deal soon amid US President Donald Trump’s tariffs on New Delhi over Russian oil purchases.
He stated: “We are in dialogue with the United States of America. Our teams are involved. We recently visited the US Secretary of Commerce and met with his counterparts. We continue to negotiate with them and the talks continue. We hope to work on a fair and just agreement in the near future.”
Speaking to DD Goyal, he noted that both nations are actively engaged in negotiations, with dedicated teams working together on the process. He added that the Commerce Secretary met with his US counterparts to further promote progress towards a balanced and mutually beneficial trade agreement.
In February this year, the leaders of India and the United States instructed their representatives to begin negotiations on a proposed Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA). The completion date for the first phase of the agreement was set for autumn (October–November) 2025, with five rounds of negotiations completed so far.
Last month, Goyal led an official delegation to New York for more trade talks.
India-US relations suffered a setback when Trump imposed a 25% reciprocal tariff on Indian exports along with an additional 25% punitive duty attached to India’s purchases of Russian oil. India called these duties “unfair, unjustified and disproportionate”.
Earlier on October 13, US Ambassador Sergio Gor met Commerce Minister Rajesh Agarwal to discuss strengthening economic ties between India and the United States with a focus on promoting investment in the US.
In a post on X, the US ambassador’s office said: “During my visit to India, I met with Commerce Secretary Agrawal and discussed US-India economic relations, including increased investment in the United States.
Later on Saturday, Gor met Prime Minister Modi and reaffirmed that the partnership between the two countries will continue to grow. Sharing his remarks about X, Gor wrote, “Honored to be with Prime Minister Narendra Modi tonight. Our relationship with India will only grow stronger in the coming months!”
US-India trade
Meanwhile, the United States remained India’s top trading partner for the fourth consecutive year in 2024-25 with total bilateral trade of $131.84 billion, of which exports accounted for $86.5 billion. The US contributed approximately 18 percent to India’s total merchandise exports, 6.22 percent to imports, and 10.73 percent to the country’s total merchandise trade.
India’s merchandise exports to the US fell 11.93 percent to $5.46 billion in September, Commerce Department data showed, mainly due to high tariffs imposed by Washington. US imports rose 11.78 percent to $3.98 billion in the same month.
