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White House releases India-US joint statement for ‘interim’ trade agreement
The White House statement claimed that India will eliminate or reduce tariffs on all US industrial goods and a wide range of US food and agricultural products.
The White House announced on February 6, 2026, Friday (local time) that the United States and India have reached a framework for an “interim agreement” regarding "reciprocal and mutually beneficial trade ("interim agreement)".
This comes days after the US President Donald Trump announced on Monday that India and the US have reached a trade deal, almost after year-long trade negotiations between the two countries. It was further confirmed by PM Modi who had said that under the trade deal, the reciprocal tariffs on Indian exports to the US will be cut down to 18%.
The joint statement released by the White House claims that India will “eliminate or reduce tariffs on all US industrial goods and a wide range of US food and agricultural products, including dried distillers’ grains (DDGs), red sorghum for animal feed, tree nuts, fresh and processed fruit, soybean oil, wine and spirits, and additional products.”
Another key term of the “interim agreement” between the United States and India, as the statement mentions, is that the US will apply a reciprocal tariff rate of 18 percent on Indian exports including textile and apparel, leather and footwear, plastic and rubber, organic chemicals, home décor, artisanal products, and certain machinery.
It adds that “subject to the successful conclusion” of the agreement, the US will remove the reciprocal tariff on a wide range of goods including generic pharmaceuticals, gems and diamonds, and aircraft parts.
‘Preferential market access, no tariffs on certain aircraft parts of India’
“The United States and India commit to provide each other preferential market access in sectors of respective interest on a sustained basis,” the statement reads.
According to the statement, the US will also remove tariffs on certain aircraft and aircraft parts of India and that India will receive a preferential tariff rate quota for automotive parts.
“Contingent on the findings of the U.S. Section 232 investigation of pharmaceuticals and pharmaceutical ingredients, India will receive negotiated outcomes with respect to generic pharmaceuticals and ingredients,” it added.
