'Talks progressing': Piyush Goyal on US trade talks amid Trump's tariffs on India over Russian oil purchases

Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said on Thursday that talks between India and the US on the proposed trade deal are progressing. He expressed optimism that both countries would soon seek to reach a fair and balanced deal amid US President Donald Trump’s tariffs on New Delhi over Russian oil purchases. He said: “We are in dialogue with the United States of America. Our teams are involved. We recently visited the Secretary of Commerce in the US, and he met with his counterparts. We continue to engage with them, and discussions are progressing. We hope to work on a fair and equitable agreement in the near future.” While speaking to DD, Goyal noted that both nations are actively engaged in negotiations, with dedicated teams collaborating on the process. He added that the Commerce Secretary met with US counterparts to drive further progress towards a balanced and mutually beneficial trade agreement. In February this year, the leaders of India and the United States instructed their officials to begin negotiations on a proposed Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA). A deadline has been set to finalize the first phase of the agreement by the autumn (October-November) of 2025, with five rounds of discussions completed so far. Last month, Goyal headed an official delegation to New York for further trade talks. India-US relations suffered a setback when Trump imposed a 25% reciprocal tariff on Indian exports, along with an additional 25% penalty attached to India’s purchases of Russian oil. India has termed these tariffs as “unfair, unjustified and unreasonable”. Earlier, on October 13, US Ambassador Sergio Gor met Commerce Minister Rajesh Agarwal to discuss strengthening economic relations 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 Minister Agrawal and discussed US-India economic ties, including increased investment in the United States.” Later, on Saturday, Gor met with Prime Minister Modi and reaffirmed that the partnership between the two countries will continue to grow stronger. Sharing his comments on X, Gor wrote: “An honor to be with Prime Minister Narendra Modi tonight. Our relationship with India will only strengthen over the months ahead!” US-India Trade Meanwhile, the United States remained India’s top trading partner for the fourth consecutive year in 2024–2025, with total bilateral trade reaching USD 131.84 billion, of which exports accounted for USD 86.5 billion. The US contributed about 18 percent to India’s total merchandise exports, 6.22 percent to its imports, and 10.73 percent to the country’s overall merchandise trade. Figures from the Ministry of Commerce show that India’s merchandise exports to the US fell 11.93 percent to USD 5.46 billion in September, largely due to the high tariffs imposed by Washington. Imports from the US grew by 11.78 percent to USD 3.98 billion during the same month. (With input from PTI)