FX.co ★ India-US Trade Talks Enter Key Phase with Washington Meetings

In promising developments, Commerce Secretary Sunil Barthwal has announced that negotiations for a proposed India-US bilateral trade agreement are progressing notably well. An Indian delegation, spearheaded by Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal, is due to travel to Washington for further discussions commencing on May 17. During his visit, which extends until May 20, Goyal is slated to engage with US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick. Chief negotiator Rajesh Agrawal will continue dialogues with his US counterpart from May 19 to 22. The two nations are considering an interim trade agreement on goods, aiming for early mutual benefits before potentially establishing a first-phase agreement by fall. Meanwhile, in a speech in Doha, US President Donald Trump indicated that India has consented to “zero tariffs” on several American goods, a shift from what he described as India’s previously “highest” tariffs.