India and the US have already agreed that Indian goods in the American market will receive preferential market access compared to competitor nations, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said on Sunday.India and the US finalised the framework for the first phase of the bilateral trade agreement in February.
The deal was to be signed earlier, but changes in the US tariff landscape have led to further negotiations on the agreement. “This was already agreed between the leaders – President (Donald) Trump and Prime Minister Narendra Modi when they announced that we have both come to a broad framework agreement a few months ago and it has been acknowledged that India will get preferential trade access in the US with lower duties than our competitor countries,” Goyal told reporters here.
He is here on a two-day visit to discuss ways to boost trade and investment between India and Egypt. The minister was replying to a question about the US assurance that Indian goods will get preferential market access.
An official has recently stated that the US has assured India of a comparative tariff advantage over competing countries under the proposed bilateral trade agreement (BTA), with both sides working to conclude the first tranche by the end of the current financial year.
“We will have to see how the tariff framework unfolds. We are working towards closing the first tranche by the end of this financial year. Talks are going for the first tranche and the broader BTA,” the official said last week. The extent of the advantage to Indian goods, however, will depend on the tariff framework eventually agreed upon.
After the US Supreme Court struck down the Trump’s reciprocal tariffs that were the basis of negotiations, the US is using alternate mechanisms to put up a new tariff architecture in place using provisions of the Trade Act.
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