Trump hikes tariffs on India by additional 25% citing Russian oil trade; iShares India ETF, ADRs react

Indian American Depositary Receipts (ADRs) listed on US exchanges saw mixed responses. Infosys closed at $16.10, down 0.62% on volume of 4.09 million shares. Wipro declined 0.56% to $2.665. Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories saw a sharper drop, falling 1.79% to $13.43. HDFC Bank slipped 0.15% to $75.62, while ICICI Bank rose 0.47% to $32.99. MakeMyTrip fell 1.50% to $91.35

US President Donald Trump has signed an executive order sharply increasing tariffs on imports from India, raising the rate by another 25 percent to 50 percent. The order, which takes effect August 27, was issued in response to what Trump described as India’s “unfair trade practices” and continued purchases of Russian oil. The move, triggered reactions in financial markets, with the iShares MSCI India ETF (INDA) slipping 0.38% to $52.21 and Indian American Depositary Receipts (ADRs) posting mixed performance on US exchanges.

The move comes after Trump’s appearance on CNBC on August 5. In the interview, Trump said, “India has not been a good trading partner. They’re buying massive amounts of oil from Russia, and they’ve taken advantage of our trade system. We’re raising tariffs substantially, and we’re not done yet.” He added that tariffs on Indian pharmaceutical imports could rise as high as 250% in future actions.

Market response
Indian American Depositary Receipts (ADRs) listed on US exchanges saw mixed responses. Infosys closed at $16.10, down 0.62% on volume of 4.09 million shares. Wipro declined 0.56% to $2.665. Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories saw a sharper drop, falling 1.79% to $13.43. HDFC Bank slipped 0.15% to $75.62, while ICICI Bank rose 0.47% to $32.99. MakeMyTrip fell 1.50% to $91.35.

Some ADRs saw modest gains despite the announcement. WNS Holdings was nearly flat, up 0.01% at $74.84. Sify Technologies gained 18.94% to close at $7.85, though the jump appeared to be driven by company-specific developments rather than the tariff news. Roadzen rose 2.14% to $1.20, and Yatra Online added 3.75%, ending at $0.935.

The iShares MSCI India ETF (INDA), which tracks broader Indian equities, declined 0.38% to $52.21 in early Wednesday trading, reflecting general investor caution toward Indian markets under the new trade conditions.

The GIFT Nifty was also trading lower at Rs 24,561, around 0.3 percent lower.

Indian government officials have not yet issued a formal response. The executive order is the latest action under Trump’s “Liberation Day” tariff policy, introduced in April 2025. At 50%, India will now have one of the highest tariffs under President Trump's reciprocal tariff policy. The announcement is believed to not include Section 232 items such as steel and aluminium as well as Annex II items of pharma, semiconductors.

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