New Delhi: Union Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal said he "had a forward-looking discussion with US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer on a mutually beneficial Bilateral Trade Agreement" between India and the US. "Our approach will be guided by ‘India First’, ‘Viksit Bharat’ and our Comprehensive Strategic Partnership," Goyal posted on X along with a photo of his meeting Greer.
Goyal had previously met Greer and US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick during his visit to the US last week. This followed US President Donald Trump and PM Narendra Modi's talks on negotiating the first tranche of a mutually beneficial, multi-sector Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA) by the fall of 2025.
The two leaders resolved to deepen the US-India trade relationship to promote growth that ensures fairness, national security, and job creation. To this end, the leaders set a bold new goal for bilateral trade - "Mission 500" - aiming to more than double total bilateral trade to $500 billion by 2030.
Commerce Secretary Lutnick said recently that he was keen to negotiate a broad-based trade agreement with India, taking into account the entire trade relationship rather than individual products.
According to a Morgan Stanley report, India is the “best-placed country in Asia”, and while India is exposed to direct tariff risks, “we believe on balance India is less exposed to global goods trade slowdown considering that it has the lowest goods exports to GDP ratio in the region.
The Indian government has also informed the Parliamentary Standing Committee on External Affairs that India has not made any commitment to reduce tariffs on goods imported from the US.
