Interim trade deal with US likely by July 8; India for full exemption from 26 pc additional tariff

INDIA and the US are likely to agree on an interim trade agreement before July 8 with New Delhi pushing for full exemption from the 26 per cent reciprocal tariff on domestic goods, an official said.

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The US on April 2 imposed an additional 26 per cent reciprocal tariff on Indian goods but suspended it for 90 days till July 9. However, the 10 per cent baseline tariff imposed by America remains in place.

The government official said India's endeavour to protect its sensitive sectors may entail some quota or minimum import price (MIP). Such sectors include agri goods and dairy.

The official added that digital services would be part of the interim trade deal.

Due to the 90-day suspension of the 26 per cent additional import duty, Indian exporters are at present paying just 10 per cent baseline tariffs, instead of 26 per cent earlier proposed.

Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal was in Washington earlier this week to give an impetus to trade talks. He met with US Trade Representative (USTR) Jamieson Greer and US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick.

In a post on X, Goyal said that he held good discussions with the US Commerce Secretary towards expediting the first tranche of India-US bilateral trade agreement.