India-US Trade Deal: American Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Suzanne P Clark, commenting on President Donald Trump’s announcement of the India-US trade deal, said it would unlock more collaboration with the private sector.
“We commend the U.S. and Indian governments for their announcement of reduced tariffs and non-tariff barriers that will benefit American and Indian businesses and workers in both great nations. We appreciate the efforts of President Trump and Prime Minister Modi, as well as their officials, including Ambassadors Kwatra and Gor. We are optimistic that this is the first step toward a comprehensive trade agreement that will unlock even more collaboration with the private sector, and we look forward to reviewing the details of the deal,” Clark said.
Meanwhile, the US-India Strategic Partnership Forum (USISPF) called the decision to lower tariffs to 18 percent an “important and positive first step”.
“While details of the agreement are pending, today’s announcement demonstrates strong political will by both parties to move toward a comprehensive U.S.-India Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA) that would address tariffs, market access, non-tariff barriers, and other trade-related issues across a broad range of sectors,” USISPF said on Monday.
He said a BTA could be meaningful for businesses, workers and consumers in both countries, while strengthening supply chains and economic resilience. He said he would work closely with the Indian government and the US government to advance a common goal of expanding bilateral trade.
The Chairman of the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Senator Jim Risch, congratulated President Trump on this “superb achievement” and added that he was “very pleased to learn that the world’s oldest and largest democracy has agreed to reduce trade barriers with the United States.”
Senator Lindsey Graham noted that India “more than deserved” the reduction. He said: “Thanks to their behavior, India has richly deserved this reduction. I hope other major nations that buy Russian products will follow India’s lead. Putin will only come to the table when the pain is so great. We are not there yet, but with India’s actions, we are getting closer. End the bloodshed in Ukraine now.
U.S. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins said, “The new U.S.-India deal will export more U.S. agricultural products to the huge Indian market, raising prices and injecting cash into rural America,” and described the result as an “America First victory on top of dozens of deals for agriculture.”
