The North News
New Delhi, February 2
US President Donald Trump has said Washington and New Delhi have reached a new trade agreement that includes a reduction in US tariffs on Indian goods and expanded purchases of American products by India. “We agreed to a trade deal between the United States and India, whereby the United States will charge a reduced reciprocal tariff, lowering it from 25% to 18%,” said Trump in his post on social media platform. In a statement issued after talks with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Trump said the agreement would take effect immediately and described it as a significant step in strengthening bilateral economic ties.
According to the US president, India has also agreed to lower its tariffs and non-tariff barriers on American goods, with the aim of reducing them to zero. He said the deal would boost US exports across multiple sectors, including energy, technology, agriculture and coal, with purchases estimated at more than $500bn.
Trump also linked the trade agreement to wider geopolitical discussions, saying the two leaders had spoken about efforts to end the war in Ukraine. He claimed that India had agreed to reduce purchases of Russian oil and increase imports from the United States and potentially Venezuela.
The US president described Modi as a “powerful and respected leader” and said relations between the two countries would grow stronger as a result of the agreement.
There was no immediate comment from the Indian government on the details of the proposed deal or the claims regarding energy imports.
