‘India doesn’t comment on internal matters’: Piyush Goyal on US tariff row, says India-US trade deal ‘well on track’

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India's bilateral trade agreement (BTA) with the United States is "well on track", said Union Minister for Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal on May 29, adding that a US court blocking the sweeping tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump is a matter internal to the country.

"India doesn't interfere or comment on the internal matters of other countries. It is for them to take decisions on their domestic issues," Goyal told reporters on the sidelines of CII's Annual Business Summit, 2025.

Goyal reiterated that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Trump, during their bilateral meeting in February of this year, resolved to pursue a mutually beneficial multi-sectoral BTA.

Also Read: Next round of India-US trade talks on June 5-6 in New Delhi.

"India wants to build robust trade ties with developed nations to create new opportunities for our farmers, engineers, and startups,"  he said.

Earlier in the day, Rajesh Aggarwal, special secretary in the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, said US concerns over its trade deficit should not obstruct progress in the India–US trade partnership.

“The overall discussion around the trade deficit is largely a narrative driven by the US administration. These are challenges they must address as a major market facing a persistent trade deficit year after year. That, I believe, should not stand in the way of the India–US trade partnership,” Agarwal, who also serves as the chief negotiator for the India–US trade deal, said at CII's Annual Business Summit, 2025.

Also Read | For next 30 years, India will continue to be world’s fastest growing economy: Piyush Goyal.

On May 28, a US trade court ruled Trump had exceeded his authority in imposing the tariffs and had ordered an immediate block on them. Calling it "liberation day", Trump, on April 2, announced reciprocal tariffs across countries, which he later paused for 90 days, and instead levied a 10 percent baseline tariff as an interim measure.

However, on May 29, a federal appeals court temporarily reinstated Trump's tariffs. The United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit in its order provided no opinion or reasoning but directed the plaintiffs in the case to respond by June 5 and the administration by June 9.

Agarwal also said the failure of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) in establishing a rule-based global trading mechanism is leading to an asymmetry in global trade, thereby creating a condition in which a few nations are weaponising markets. Read here.