Trump says not considering lowering tariffs on India imports

WASHINGTON – US President Donald Trump says he is not looking at lowering tariffs on India, one week after the US doubled levies on the country’s imports to 50 per cent as punishment for its Russian oil imports.

Mr Trump responded “no” when asked by a reporter whether he is considering taking away some of

the tariffs imposed on India.

“We get along with India very well,” he said at a White House event on Sept 2, but criticised what he said was an imbalanced trade relationship with New Delhi because of high Indian levies.

“India has... you have to understand, for many years, it was a one-sided relationship,” he said. “India was charging us tremendous tariffs, about the highest in the world.”

The US tariffs on India came despite months of negotiations between New Delhi and Washington and stunned officials in India. India’s high tariffs and protectionist policies have exasperated US trade negotiators.

Mr Trump set a 25 per cent duty on Indian exports but doubled that level to 50 per cent last week as punishment for purchases of Russian oil. Those levies hit more than 55 per cent of goods shipped to the US, which is India’s biggest market.

Mr Trump has expressed frustration over India’s continued purchases of Russian energy, which New Delhi has justified as necessary to keep its oil prices low.

Critics say such energy buys by India and China help keep Russia’s economy afloat and undercut sanctions against Moscow aimed at reining in the country’s military machine and bringing an end to the war in Ukraine.

India’s government has decried the tariffs as unfair, saying it will continue purchasing Russian oil as long as it remains financially advantageous.

On Sept 2, India also challenged US duties on certain copper products at the World Trade Organisation, arguing that the high levies constitute trade restrictions that hurt its exporters. These copper tariffs are separate from the 50 per cent duties.

Mr Trump said he was “watching very closely” to see how Russian President Vladimir Putin addressed efforts to set up a meeting with his Ukrainian counterpart and insinuated he was considering additional measures if talks did not progress.

Mr Trump on Sept 1 said India has offered to

cut its tariffs “to nothing”

in a social media post, without saying when that offer was made or whether the White House plans to reopen trade talks with India.

“It’s getting late. They should have done so years ago,” Mr Trump said.

Still, analysts say there are signs both sides are keeping the door open to resolving tensions. On Sept 2, India’s Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal said he hopes to

finalise a trade deal

with the US by November.

“We’ve had a little bit of a geopolitical issue overtaking trade issues in our negotiations with the US,” he said during a virtual address at an investor conference. “I do hope things will get back on track soon and will conclude a bilateral trade agreement by fall.” BLOOMBERG