The Daily Populous Saturday March 8th, 2025 day edition
Authored by hindustantimes.com and submitted by SolRon25

US President Donald Trump on Friday said that India has agreed to cut tariffs significantly because he is finally exposing New Delhi for imposing ‘massive tariffs’ on American imports. US President Donald Trump speaks during an executive order signing ceremony in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, US, on Thursday, March 6, 2025. (Bloomberg)

“India charges us massive tariffs. Massive. You can't even sell anything in India. They have agreed, by the way; they want to cut their tariffs way down now because somebody is finally exposing them for what they have done,” ANI quoted Trump as saying.

This is the third time in as many days that Trump has remarked about India’s tariffs. His comments come when India's Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal is in Washington for trade talks with his US counterpart Howard Lutnick.

Also read | India working to protect its exports amid US tariffs threat: Nirmala Sitharaman

MEA says US deal can ‘boost trade’

The ministry of external affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said on Saturday that the planned Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA) with the US can potentially boost bilateral trade between the two countries.

“The two governments are in the process of advancing discussions on a multi-sector Bilateral Trade Agreement. Through the BTA, our objective is to strengthen and deepen India-US two-way trade in the goods and services sector, increase market access, reduce tariff and non-tariff barriers, and deepen supply chain integration between the two countries,” said Jaiswal.

Also read | Agriculture key focus in early India-US trade talks

Earlier on Saturday, Lutnick claimed that India's tariffs on American products are among the highest globally and urged New Delhi to reconsider its position, noting that the two countries share a “special” bilateral relationship.

Speaking virtually at the India Today Conclave, the commerce secretary stressed the need for India to open up its agricultural trade for imports and suggested that it can be “smarter” while dealing with the most "important trading partner" US on the other side of the table.

“The good thing is your government truly understands your market, and we understand ours. And the key is to try to find that place. So yes, the Indian market for agriculture, it has to open up,” Lutnick said.

humtum6767 on March 8th, 2025 at 13:21 UTC »

It’s in India’s interest to have free trade with USA. If its manufacturing cannot compete with high income country like USA then shame on them. Tariffs should still apply to enemy countries like China and Pakistan.

shankisaiyan on March 8th, 2025 at 07:26 UTC »

Even as an Indian I feel Indian automobile industry has been sheltered for a long time. I believe it's time for us to reduce or eliminate tariffs.. Just don't see why we don't have decent access to Harleys. Enfields have had a good time to mature. They could use some competition.

As much as I'd like to see an F150, I don't think that's going to happen on Indian roads. But the US is not wrong in asking for it.

Trump's still in his first 100 days.. People in the US are excited and he's trying to seal his legacy. Don't see much wrong with this. Indians don't care too much about protecting domestic industry if it's not strategic. We can use some competition at this point.

India's been in the US' situation and we've enjoyed some 'in-your-face-populism' as well at the cost of others. Many times the US. So it's just a democratic dance that we too should participate in when it's at our cost.

But sometime in the 3 to 6 month range when Americans get back to watching movies or sports or whatever non triggering media they enjoy and Indians are busy with the ipl or summer blockbusters,, it will be time to start surfacing market access issues on the US side as well. For goods and talent combined. A more holistic discussion respectful of each other.

Both countries will benefit from opener markets but industry on each side needs to be mature enough for it.

Till then I'll let Modi decide how much leeway to give. If this were an act of domination, the reaction would be much different. Escalatory with no f's given for mutual destruction.

But this is an act of populism. Not ideal but nothing we haven't seen before.

SolRon25 on March 8th, 2025 at 04:33 UTC »

SS: “India charges us massive tariffs. Massive. You can’t even sell anything in India. They have agreed, by the way; they want to cut their tariffs way down now because somebody is finally exposing them for what they have done,” ANI quoted Trump as saying.

This is the third time in as many days that Trump has remarked about India’s tariffs. His comments come when India’s Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal is in Washington for trade talks with his US counterpart Howard Lutnick.