India-US interim trade deal likely to be operationalised by April, says Piyush Goyal

Union commerce minister Piyush Goyal

The interim trade deal between India and the US will likely be operationalised in April, Union commerce minister Piyush Goyal said on February 20.

In addition, the free trade agreements with UK and Oman are also likely to be operationalised in April, Goyal said, adding that trade pact with New Zealand will be complemented by September.

Earlier this month, US President Donald Trump had announced reducing in tariffs on India from 50 percent to 18 percent. Following the announcement, Washington and New Delhi signed an interim trade deal and issued a joint statement that laid down the direction of the bilateral agreement.

Under the deal, New Delhi will reduce its import of Russian crude oil and the Trump administration, in return, will remove the 25 percent penalty on Indian shipments.

According to Goyal, nearly half of India’s exports to the US will enter duty-free under the new arrangement, while about 35% will attract a lower tariff of roughly 18%. The remaining 10–15% — including products such as steel and aluminium — will continue to face US Section 232 tariffs, which can go up to 50%.

He said the pact is expected to provide an immediate boost to sectors including textiles, machinery components, auto parts, leather, footwear, sports goods, furniture, handicrafts and handloom products.

The minister added that sensitive agricultural products have been kept entirely outside the agreement. Items such as dairy, poultry, meat, rice, wheat, sugar, soyabean, corn, millets, pulses, bananas and genetically modified products are not covered under the deal.