India-US interim trade deal talks scheduled for next week postponed: Report

A three-day trade meeting between officials from New Delhi and Washington was likely to begin on February 23

India and the US have decided to reschedule the chief negotiators' meeting over the interim trade deal, which was likely to take place next week, PTI reported citing government sources.

A three-day trade meeting between officials from New Delhi and Washington was likely to begin on February 23. Darpan Jain is India's chief negotiator, a joint secretary in the commerce ministry. "With regards to the visit of the Indian team of negotiators to the US for the India-US trade deal, the two sides are of the view that the proposed visit of the Indian chief negotiator and the team be scheduled after each side has had the time to evaluate the latest developments and their implications. The meeting will be rescheduled at a mutually convenient date," a source told PTI.

The development comes in the wake of the US Supreme Court’s ruling against the US President Donald Trump administration’s earlier sweeping tariffs. On Friday, Trump imposed a 10% tariff on all countries, including India, effective February 24 for a period of 150 days. A day later, he announced that the rate would be raised to 15%.

India and the US had agreed to an interim trade deal earlier this month, under which Trump's administration agreed to cut tariffs on Indian goods to 18 percent from the previous 50 percent. Both sides had issued a joint statement that provided a clear path forward for further discussions before finalising the comprehensive deal.

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

However, the top US court's order has complicated the situation and the new date will be announced after evaluating the latest developments.

The fresh duties are being imposed under Section 122 — a largely untested provision that permits tariffs of up to 15%, but mandates congressional approval for any extension beyond 150 days. No US president has previously invoked this section, and its deployment could invite further legal scrutiny.

Trade analysts and congressional aides doubt a Republican-controlled Congress would back an extension, particularly as opinion polls suggest a growing number of Americans attribute rising prices to the tariffs.

In a social media post on Saturday, Trump said the 150-day window would allow him to prepare other “legally permissible” tariffs. The administration is expected to lean on two separate laws that authorise product- or country-specific duties following investigations into national security risks or unfair trade practices.

“I, as President of the United States of America, will be, effective immediately, raising the 10% Worldwide Tariff … to the fully allowed, and legally tested, 15% level,” Trump wrote on Truth Social, accusing several countries of having “ripped” the US off for decades.