Read for 3 minutesFebruary 21, 2026 04:56 AM IST
United States Trade Representative (USTR) Jamieson Greer. (AP Photo/File)
United States Trade Representative Jamieson Greer is expected to be in India next month for the signing of the first tranche. India-US Trade Agreement It will come into effect in April, government officials said on Friday.
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This means that the agreement with the US will come into effect before the trade agreements with the UK and the EU are reached.
An Indian delegation will travel to Washington on Sunday for three days of talks to finalize a legal agreement, with the US withdrawing additional 25 per cent tariffs imposed on India on Russian oil purchases. The process is crucial because US trade deals under the Trump administration are unusual, challenging legal teams.
On Friday, Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal said that the export rate of Indian goods reached double digits in February and exporters have started exploring opportunities in free trade agreement countries even before the implementation of trade agreements. Indian goods exports were flat in January and exports to the US fell 22 percent.
Responding to opposition criticism that India has received nothing in return for opening up the economy to American products, Goyal said, “You are all exporters here. Are you happy with a 50% tariff? Has your business grown? Are your jobs safe? In Tiruppur? What happened to your leather industry? Labour-intensive sectors are suffering.”
He said businesses will grow at the rate of 18 percent that India negotiated under the trade agreement with the US. He said it would help boost exports of gems and jewelery and spices.
On imports from the US, Goyal said India needs high-tech equipment like GPUs (graphics processing units), coking coal and aircraft.
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“In India we need aircraft. Our steel production will double from 140 million to 300 million tonnes in the next 5-6 years. Huge investments, nearly Rs 10 lakh crore investments are in the pipeline in the steel industry. That steel needs coking coal. Are you all businessmen in this room?” he said.
Under the US executive order rolling back additional tariffs on India, India committed to halting Russian oil purchases with a snap-back provision that a committee of US officials would monitor Indian imports and reimpose tariffs if India resumed buying Russian oil.
According to a joint India-US statement, India hopes to buy US products worth $500 billion annually in five years. Commerce ministry officials said the imports could include aircraft, technology goods, precious metals, oil and nuclear products. In FY25, India imported US goods worth $45.62 billion, while exports to the US stood at $86.51 billion.
© The Indian Express Pvt
