India–US Trade Talks Make Headway; Top US Delegation in Delhi, Says Piyush Goyal

Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said discussions with the United States on a proposed bilateral trade agreement are moving ahead, as American negotiators hold a fresh round of talks in New Delhi. The visit is part of efforts to complete the first tranche of the pact and address tariff disputes.

Goyal told reporters at the Pravasi Rajasthani Divas that a US team is already in the capital and hinted at a possible meeting with the visitors. "Talks are continuously progressing with them. We are moving forward towards a bilateral trade agreement," Goyal said, adding that negotiations remain active.

Key negotiations on bilateral trade agreement and tariff framework

The official US delegation is led by Deputy US Trade Representative (USTR) Rick Switzer, who is holding two days of discussions with Commerce Secretary Rajesh Agrawal. The US chief negotiator, Assistant USTR for South and Central Asia Brendan Lynch, is meeting India’s lead negotiator, Joint Secretary in the Department of Commerce Darpan Jain.

Agrawal has recently said India hopes to finalise a framework trade deal within this year that could ease tariff pressures for Indian exporters. While stressing that a full Bilateral Trade Agreement will need more time, Agrawal described ongoing talks with the US as lengthy but focused on reciprocal tariff issues.

Parallel tracks in India-US bilateral trade agreement talks

India and the United States are running two separate but related processes. One covers a framework trade deal aimed mainly at tariff concerns, while a second track is working towards a wider, comprehensive bilateral trade agreement. Both formats are intended to reshape trade rules between the two partners.

Leaders of the two countries instructed officials in February to negotiate an agreement and set an initial target to complete the first tranche by the autumn of 2025. Negotiators have already held six rounds of talks. The agreement seeks to lift bilateral trade to USD 500 billion by 2030 from about USD 191 billion now.

The present round of talks is viewed as important because it is the second US mission to India since Washington applied a 25 per cent tariff and an additional 25 per cent penalty on some Indian goods. The measures followed India’s purchase of Russian crude oil and have weighed on several export categories.

The same US officials last visited New Delhi on 16 September. On 22 September, Goyal led an Indian delegation to the United States for trade discussions, after an earlier trip to Washington in May. Officials on both sides are trying to use these frequent contacts to narrow differences over tariffs and market access.

Exporters say the agreement matters, as merchandise shipments from India to the United States dropped for the second month in a row in October. Exports to the US fell 8.58 per cent to USD 6.3 billion, a decline they link partly to the higher duties imposed by Washington on Indian products.

The United States has remained India’s largest trading partner for the fourth year in a row in 2024-25, with bilateral trade during the period at USD 131.84 billion, including USD 86.5 billion of exports from India. The US accounts for a major share of India’s trade flows, as shown below.

With India counting on the United States for almost one-fifth of its goods exports, officials see the bilateral trade agreement and the tariff-focused framework deal as central to stabilising ties. Progress in the current talks will be watched closely by Indian exporters affected by recent duties.