India's commerce ministry says products making up about 45% of the country's exports to the United States avoid Washington's new 10% levy, after trade talks placed India in a lower tariff category. The remaining 55% still carries the extra duty, and negotiations on a broader bilateral deal continue.
Generic medicines, smartphones, steel, aluminium and auto parts are among the goods that remain exempt from the additional 10% levy Washington announced last week, India's Ministry of Commerce and Industry said in a statement dated Saturday. Those products account for about 45% of India's exports to the U.S.
Trade negotiations helped India secure the lower tariff category under President Donald Trump's trade framework. The remaining 55% of Indian exports will face the extra 10% duty, though the ministry noted that India's tariff rates stay lower than those applied to many other economies covered by the U.S. measures.
Exporters expected to gain a competitive advantage
The exemptions are expected to provide a competitive advantage to Indian exporters as businesses grapple with rising trade barriers and uncertainty over future U.S. tariff policy. New Delhi said it is continuing discussions with Washington to reach an early conclusion on a broader bilateral trade agreement.
A court ruling reshaped the terms
Both governments have negotiated trade ties since last year. A preliminary pact reached in February envisaged an 18% tariff on Indian goods. But subsequent legal developments in the United States altered the trade landscape, among them a Supreme Court ruling that invalidated Trump's reciprocal tariff framework.
Generic medicines remain the open question
The announcement also comes amid concerns over potential U.S. tariffs on generic medicines, a move that has weighed on Indian pharmaceutical companies. For those companies, the United States is the largest export market.
Earlier this month, India rejected suggestions that it could face steeper tariffs over labour-related concerns, arguing that the U.S. had not provided evidence that the country lacked adequate safeguards against forced labour.
Source: Investing.com
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