VISAKHAPATNAM: A day after India and the US completed another round of negotiations, commerce & industry minister Piyush Goyal said Friday that the two countries are moving towards finalising the interim trade agreement and are expected to execute the first tranche of the trade deal by mid-July.“I also met with them yesterday, and we are fast moving towards closing all the open ends. Sometime by the middle of next month or so, we should be in a position to execute a very, very vibrant first tranche. It is only the first tranche of our bilateral trade agreement, which will give preferential access to India over our competitors,” he said. A high-level American team is expected to visit India towards the end of June.High-level US team may visit India month-endA high-level American team is expected to visit India towards the end of June and may be led by US Trade Representative (USTR) Jamieson Greer, govt officials indicated. The trade deal will also coincide with the 150-day 10% additional duty that is currently in place and is due to lapse by July 22.Earlier this week, the office of US Trade Representative proposed 12.5% additional tariffs on India apart from over 50 other countries for their failure to check import of goods using forced labour, and a second report is also expected.Govt officials viewed it as a tool by the US to get countries back to the negotiating table given that the Trump administration has few options to impose fresh duties. The tariffs proposed under section 301 are seen to be the replacement for the 10% interim tariffs.While the text is being kept ready, a final decision on the new levy will be based on how the USTR deals with the outcome of the two investigations for which hearing is scheduled early next month.Given that the US is the biggest destination for India’s exports, govt has little choice but to negotiate an agreement, just as the other countries are doing, while seeking to ensure comparative tariff advantage over rival countries.On Feb 7, India and the US issued a joint statement finalising the contours or framework of the first phase of the BTA or an interim trade deal with 18% additional import duty on all Indian exports. But it was kept on hold after the US Supreme Court threw out the reciprocal tariffs, terming them illegal.After finalising the framework for the first tranche of the bilateral trade agreement, the two countries are looking to finalise the details of the interim trade pact and take forward the negotiations for the broader pact.
