With the India-US trade talks moving in the right direction, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal is expected to visit Washington soon, sources said.
Illustration: Dominic Xavier/Rediff
The visit comes in the backdrop of recently concluded daylong discussions here between US Chief Negotiator Brendan Lynch and his Indian counterpart Rajesh Agrawal on the proposed bilateral trade agreement.
“The commerce minister’s visit is likely soon… may be in the next few days… for the trade talks,” they said.
On September 16, the commerce ministry stated that daylong discussions with the visiting US team on a bilateral trade deal were positive, and both sides agreed to push for an early and mutually beneficial conclusion of the agreement.
“It was decided to intensify efforts to achieve early conclusion of a mutually beneficial trade agreement,” the ministry said in a statement after a seven-hour meeting with US officials.
The talks were important as the US has imposed a steep 50 per cent tariff on Indian goods.
The visit of the high-ranking US trade officials was first after the imposition of a 25 per cent tariff and an additional 25 per cent penalty on Indian goods entering the American market for buying Russian crude oil.
In February, leaders of the two countries directed officials to negotiate a proposed Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA).
It was planned to conclude the first tranche of the pact by the fall (October-November) of 2025. So far, five rounds of negotiations have been held.
The pact is aimed at more than doubling the bilateral trade to $500 billion by 2030 from the current $191 billion.
Goyal visited Washington earlier in May for the trade talks. He held deliberations with US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick in Washington.
The US remained India’s largest trading partner for the fourth consecutive year in 2024-25, with bilateral trade valued at $131.84 billion ($86.5 billion exports).
The US accounts for about 18 per cent of India’s total goods exports, 6.22 per cent in imports, and 10.73 per cent in the country’s total merchandise trade.
