India says 'very close' to trade deal with US

NEW DELHI: India and the United States are very close to finalising a trade deal, India’s trade minister Piyush Goyal said on Thursday, a day after he wrapped up talks with U.S. trade chief Jamieson Greer over a pact seen as crucial to bilateral ties.

Greer, in a two-day visit to New Delhi this week, led the latest round of negotiations for a deal that has been in the making for months and has added uncertainty in relations strained amid diplomatic tensions.

New Delhi has been pushing for a tariff lower than that imposed on goods from other Asian economies, while Washigton wants India to import more American goods.

The two sides discussed how Washington will find “the appropriate tools and legal backing,” to give India an advantage over its competition, Goyal said at an event in London.

“The day that happens, the deal is on,” Goyal said.

An initial understanding on trade reached between the two nations in February included an 18% tariff on Indian goods in exchange for New Delhi lowering trade barriers and buying more American goods.

At the time, the tariff was lower than for competing economies such as Bangladesh and Vietnam. But a final deal was waylaid when the U.S. Supreme Court invalidated Trump’s sweeping global tariffs.

Negotiations have been further complicated by the USTR’s Section 301 probe into alleged overcapacity and forced labour in India and other countries.