India plans to delay signing of trade deal with US by several months

India plans to postpone the signing of a trade agreement with the United States for several months, Reuters reports, citing four sources in New Delhi.

According to sources, the reason was a new initiative of the administration of US President Donald Trump. On March 11, the Office of the US Trade Representative launched an investigation into the trade practices of a number of countries, including India. Washington suspects some states of “structural overproduction in industrial sectors”.

Initially, New Delhi expected that an interim trade agreement with the US would be signed in March, after which the parties would proceed to conclude a full-fledged agreement. However, now the deadlines may be shifted by several months.

As the agency’s interlocutors add, the negotiations lost momentum after the decision of the US Supreme Court in late February, which canceled part of the tariffs introduced by the Trump administration. After that, according to the agency’s interlocutors, there were practically no substantive negotiations between the parties. An additional factor was Washington’s preoccupation with foreign policy issues, in particular the war against Iran.

“We are in no hurry to sign any agreement. The new investigation is a pressure tactic to force countries to conclude agreements after the court’s decision,” said one of the interlocutors.

According to him, India is currently adhering to a “wait and watch” position to assess the further development of US tariff policy.

At the same time, a spokesman for the Indian Ministry of Commerce denied information about the postponement of negotiations. He said that the parties continue to work on a mutually beneficial trade agreement, but did not provide details.

The White House also confirmed that Washington and New Delhi continue to cooperate with the aim of finalizing the agreements.

Tags: USA, duties, India