United States President Donald Trump on Tuesday announced that he might impose a tariff between 20% and 25% on India, but also noted that nothing has been decided so far, said Bloomberg. This is when both the nations are caught in between talks prior to Trump’s deadline of August 1 to put tariffs into effect.
Trump Says ‘I Think So’ on Proposed Tariff Range
When asked whether 20%-25% was a potential tariff rate for India, Trump told reporters, “I think so”.
The US President also called India a “good friend”, however, he reiterated that India levies more tariffs on the US than “almost any other country.
“India has been a good friend, but India has charged basically more tariffs than almost any other country… You just can’t do that,” Bloomberg quoted Trump as saying aboard Air Force One during his return to the US from a five-day Scotland visit.
Trump Vows to Keep Tariff Floor Above 15%
Trump had stated last week, on July 23, that the US will not fall below 15% as he establishes reciprocal tariff rates for countries across the globe.
India is scrambling to sign a trade agreement with the United States as the August 1 deadline draws near, with officials from both countries negotiating back and forth. Nonetheless, US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said on Monday in an interview with CNBC that negotiations with India could take longer.
No Breakthrough in July Negotiation Round
An Indian negotiating team headed by chief negotiator Rajesh Agrawal came back from Washington in July after the fourth-day-long fifth round of trade negotiations without any breakthrough. An American negotiating team will travel to India in the second half of August for the next round of negotiations, news agency PTI quoted an official.
The four-day talks did not tackle chronic disagreements on agriculture, automobiles and in what has been a potentially new area digital trade, policies that have long held the talks back since March, leaving India’s fate hanging as the deadline approaches.
