India tariff news highlights: PM Modi, Rajnath take veiled jibes at Trump over tariffs

The Standing Committee on External Affairs, headed by Congress MP Shashi Tharoor, will be briefed on Monday on the latest developments in India's foreign policy.

Representatives of the Ministry of External Affairs and the Ministry of Commerce & Industry will brief the panel on the current developments in India's foreign policy, with special reference to US-India trade negotiations and tariffs.

RSS-affiliate Swadeshi Jagran Manch (SJM) on Sunday held a symbolic protest here against the imposition of "unethical and unreasonable" tariffs by the US on Indian goods.

The protest was organised by the SJM volunteers under the 'Swadeshi, Suraksha and Swavlamban' campaign against "illegal, unethical and unreasonable tariffs" on products from Bharat, Manch's national co-convenor Ashwani Mahajan said in a statement.

Gold prices are likely to extend gains in the coming week amid tariff tensions and macroeconomic uncertainty, PTI quoted analysts as saying. Gold prices have continued to rally and record new highs in international as well as domestic futures, Prathamesh Mallya, DVP – Research, Non-Agri Commodities and Currencies at Angel One, said, according to PTI.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday appeared to respond to United States President Donald Trump’s remark describing India as a “dead economy,” emphasizing that the nation is steadily advancing toward becoming one of the world’s top three economies.

Speaking at a public event in Bengaluru, PM Modi credited India’s growth to a spirit of reform, performance, and transformation, supported by clear intentions and honest efforts.

“We are rapidly moving towards becoming the top third economies. This speed came to us from the spirit of reform, perform, and transform. This speed came to us from clear intention and honest efforts. In 2014, Metro was limited to only five cities. And now there is a network of more than 1000 km in 24 cities,” the Prime Minister said.

Union defence minister Rajnath Singh said that India's economy was the most “dashing and dynamic” in the world, adding that some people were not liking it. “Today, if any country has a dashing and dynamic economy, it is India's economy,” Singh said.

“Many people are trying to do something, so that when things made by the hands of Indians in India go to countries of the world, they become more expensive than the things made in those countries, and they become so expensive that the people of the world do not buy them,” Singh said, according to PTI.

Stephen Colbert slammed US President Donald Trump's 50 per cent tariffs on India, saying that the duties would lead to an increase in prices of items like gauze, bandages, and wading in America. “Perfect time to introduce my new product, Steve's wad. What's in them? What do you care? You're bleeding. It's a wad,” Colbert said. “I hope you remembered to set your clocks back to 'more expensive,” he added.

Amid tariff tensions between the two countries, India's ambassador to the United States, Vinay Mohan Kwatra, spoke to US Senator Lindsey Graham. “Spoke to Senator @LindseyGrahamSC and shared with him the Indian perspective on our energy security, including increasing energy trade with the United States,” Kwatra said in a post on X.

This comes a day after Graham urged India to help end the war in Ukraine. “As I have been telling my friends in India, one of the most consequential things they could do to improve India-U.S. relations is to help President Trump end this bloodbath in Ukraine,” Graham had posted on X.

Former vice-president Venkaiah Naidu on Sunday said that those who were importing from Russia had objections to India doing the same. “People who are importing from Russia are objecting to us for importing from Russia. We have to decide from which country we have to import, keeping our national interest in mind,” Naidu said.

Nobel laureate Abhijit Banerjee said that India needs to “think hard whether Russian oil imports are worth it." He further suggested that India “go back to the US” and hold talks on whether the tariffs would be removed if Russian oil imports are stopped, PTI reported.

“It is not crazy to think about it. At a 25 per cent tariff, some of our exports are already not competitive, so maybe 50 per cent (tariff) does not matter,” the economist said.

India tariff news LIVE updates: The Seafood Export Association of India has approached the ministries of commerce and finance to seek emergency financial support as USD 2 billion worth of shrimp exports to the US face severe disruptions due to increased tariffs imposed by President Trump, PTI reports.

The association has requested a 30% increase in working capital through soft loans, with margins covered by interest subvention and a 240-day moratorium for pre- and post-packaging operations.

India tariff news LIVE updates: US consumers probably experienced a slight pickup in underlying inflation in July as retailers gradually raised prices on a variety of items subject to higher import duties, reports Bloomberg.

The core consumer price index, regarded as a measure of underlying inflation because it strips out volatile food and energy costs, rose 0.3% in July, according to the median projection in a Bloomberg survey of economists. In June, core CPI edged up 0.2% from the prior month.

Moody's Ratings on Friday said India's GDP growth is likely to slow down by about 30 basis points to 6 per cent in the current fiscal if the US implements 50 per cent tariffs from August 27.

However, resilient domestic demand and the strength of the services sector will mitigate the strain on India, Moody's said, adding that India's response to high US tariffs will ultimately determine the effect on its growth, inflation and external position. (PTI)

Stock markets will be driven by inflation data, trade-related news, earnings and trading activity of foreign investors in a holiday-shortened week, analysts said on Sunday.

Global market trends will also influence trading sentiment this week, they added.

"This week, attention will turn to domestic CPI and WPI inflation data. Developments in the US–India trade relations will also remain in focus amid ongoing discussions over a trade agreement. The earnings season is nearing its end, with key results due from Ashok Leyland, ONGC, IOC, Hindalco Industries, BPCL and others, which could drive stock-specific action," Ajit Mishra – SVP, Research, Religare Broking Ltd, said. (PTI)

India tariff news LIVE updates: Indian refiners, the world's biggest user of Russian oil, can operate without supplies from Moscow from a technical standpoint, but the shift would involve major economic and strategic trade-offs, analysts said.

Russian crude supports high distillate yields - the share of crude converted into fuels like petrol, diesel, and jet fuel through distillation. Replacing Russian crude, which accounts for up to 38 per cent of India's refinery intake, with alternatives will shift yields, resulting in lower middle distillates (diesel and jet fuel) and higher residue outputs, according to global real-time data and analytics provider Kpler. (PTI)

India tariff news LIVE updates: The Seafood Export Association of India has approached the ministries of commerce and finance to seek emergency financial support as USD 2 billion worth of shrimp exports to the US face severe disruptions due to increased tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump, a statement said on Sunday.

The association has requested a 30 per cent increase in working capital through soft loans, with margins covered by interest subvention and a 240-day moratorium for pre- and post-packaging operations.

"Close to USD 2 billion worth of shrimp exports face severe disruptions," Seafood Export Association of India (SEAI) Secretary General K N Raghavan told PTI, adding that Trump last week further increased reciprocal tariffs from 25 per cent to up to 50 per cent. (PTI)

India tariff news LIVE updates: According to the negotiating document accessed by the Washington Post, the Trump administration officials planned to push India along with other countries such as Taiwan and Indonesia to buy more military hardware from the US and increase their defence spending.

India tariff news LIVE updates: According to some internal government documents accessed by the Washington Post, US President Donald Trump's tariff strategy was aimed at serving the interests of specific companies along with national policy goals.

According to the report, the US officials discussed pushing the other nations for outcomes favorable for individual companies such as Chevron and Elon Musk’s Starlink. Chevron is one of the world’s 10 largest oil producers.

Amid the ongoing tariff tussle between New Delhi and Washington, India on Friday firmly denied media reports suggesting that India has paused discussions with the United States regarding defence procurements.

“The news reports on India pausing the talks related to defence purchases with the US are false and fabricated. It is clarified that the various cases of procurement are being progressed as per the extant procedures," a senior official from the Ministry of Defence said.

Reacting to Trump's 50% tariff threat on Indian imports, Dammu Ravi, secretary of economic relations in India's external affairs ministry, had earlier said the move “lacked logic”. He also indicated that India may look to seek rebalance its global partnernships in the face of the tariffs. "If the US becomes difficult to export to, you will automatically look at other opportunities," he had said.

While half of Donald Trump's 50 per cent tariffs announced on Indian imports came into force on August 7, the remaining 25 per cent are set to take effect on August 27. Ahead of that deadline, India may be planning a retaliation with countertariffs for US' 50% tariffs on steel and aluminium announced in June, people aware of the matter have said. “Washington is unwilling to address New Delhi’s concerns through talks, which leaves India with little option other than to retaliate,” one person aware of the matter has reportedly said. Read full report here.

Indian equity markets are set for a choppy week ahead as investors brace for any new development on escalating trade tensions with the United States, besides the release of key domestic inflation data for July.

The cautious sentiment follows a sixth straight week of declines for benchmark indices, with both the Sensex and Nifty ending lower on persistent selling pressure and profit booking, analysts said.

During the week ended Friday, the BSE Sensex dropped 1.01 per cent to close at 79,857.79, while the NSE Nifty shed 1.20 per cent to settle at 24,363.30.

Market mood turned negative after the US President Donald Trump announced a total 50 per cent tariff on Indian goods, a move that unsettled investors and particularly export-focused sectors. Read more. (ANI)

Trump’s steep 50 pe cent tariffs on India are threatening to push its stock market even further behind China, reported Bloomberg.

India’s stock market is lagging behind China's by $6.3 trillion, which is the widest gap since March, the report added. The MSCI India Index is trailing China’s by 10 percentage points this quarter and is heading for its worst yearly performance since 2017

The newly announced 50 per cent US tariffs are in addition to the existing standard import duty in the US.

According to GTRI, some Indian products that will now face high US export duties include:

Organic chemicals - 54% total duty

Carpets - 52.9%

Knitted clothes - 63.9%

Woven clothes - 60.3%

Textiles, made ups - 59%

Diamonds, gold - 52.1%

Machinery and mechanical appliances - 51.3%

Furniture, bedding, mattresses – 52.3% (PTI)

The 50% tariff imposed by the Trump administration has left Punjab and Haryana basmati growers and exporters deeply worried, fearing severe impact on aromatic grain exports to the US as neighbouring Pakistan gains a significant competitive advantage.

The punitive tariff rate — among the highest imposed on any US trading partner — stems from Trump’s August 7 executive order adding a 25% penalty for India’s Russian oil purchases on top of an existing 25% reciprocal tariff, with the combined levy taking effect August 28.

“It’s a double whammy,” said Ranjit Singh Jossan, vice-president of the basmati exporters association, explaining that India exports nearly 300,000 tonnes (worth $350 million) to the US annually and the steep tariffs will hit exporters hard while giving Pakistan—another major producer, with a 19% levy on its goods —a crucial edge. Read more.

India tariff news LIVE updates: China on Thursday slammed the United States for doubling the tariffs on India to 50 per cent, saying that Beijing's opposition to the abuse of tariffs has been consistent and clear.

China’s foreign ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun, while addressing the press on Thursday, was asked for a comment on US’ additional 25 per cent tariffs on India for doing business with Russia, to which he replied, “China’s opposition to the abuse of tariffs is consistent and clear.”