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Will India face 20-25% tariff rate from US? Donald Trump says ‘I think so’
Earlier last week, on July 23, Trump had said that the US would not go below 15% as he sets reciprocal tariff rates for nations around the world.
United States President Donald Trump said on Tuesday that he may hit India with a tariff rate of 20% to 25%, however, he added that nothing has been finalised yet, reported Bloomberg. This comes as both the countries are in between negotiations before Trump’s August 1 deadline to impose tariffs.
When asked whether 20%-25% was a potential tariff rate for India, Trump told reporters, “I think so”.
The US President also called India a “good friend”, however, he reiterated that India levies more tariffs on the US than “almost any other country.
“India has been a good friend, but India has charged basically more tariffs than almost any other country… You just can’t do that,” Bloomberg quoted Trump as saying aboard Air Force One during his return to the US from a five-day Scotland visit.
Last week, on July 23, Trump had said that the US would not go below 15% as he sets reciprocal tariff rates for nations around the world.
Also read: Negotiators return from US as tariffs suspense lingers
India-US trade deal
India is racing to secure a trade deal with the United States as the August 1 deadline approaches, with officials from both nations engaging continuously in negotiations. However, US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer told CNBC on Monday that negotiations with India may take more time.
Also read: US officials to visit India in August for next round of trade talks
A negotiating team of India, led by chief negotiator Rajesh Agrawal, returned from Washington in July after concluding the fifth round of trade talks which lasted for four days, without achieving any breakthrough. A team of US negotiators will visit India in the second half of August for the next round of talks, news agency PTI reported citing an unidentified official.
The four-day discussions failed to resolve persistent disputes over agriculture, automobiles and — in what has emerged as a potentially new domain — digital trade, policies that have stalled negotiations since March, leaving India’s fate uncertain as the deadline looms.
With inputs from Bloomberg.
