US commerce chief urges India to lower tariff walls, look at "grand" trade deal

Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said a deal can be crafted with certain quotas and limits.

Howard Lutnick, U.S. President Donald Trump's nominee to be commerce secretary, testifies before a Senate Commerce Committee confirmation hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., January 29, 2025. / REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque/File Photo

India should bring down its high tariffs for the Unites States as Washington means to pursue "something grand" in a bilateral trade deal between the two countries, U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick told India Today television on March 7.

India's tariffs, amongst the highest in the world, require a rethinking of its "special relationship" with the U.S., Lutnick said in an interview.

His remarks come weeks ahead of U.S. President Donald Trump's planned reciprocal tariffs from early April on trading partners, including India, which are worrying exporters across sectors ranging from autos to agriculture.

Also Read: No easy answer to higher global tariffs, BoE's Dhingra says

"We would like to focus on bilateral conversation just between India and the United States, bring down the tariff levels that India has, that protects some of its areas," Lutnick said.

For sensitive sectors like agriculture, which India has long protected in the interest of its small farmers, Lutnick said a deal can be crafted with certain quotas and limits, but India must open up the sector.

After a meeting between Trump and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi last month, the two countries agreed to resolve tariff rows and work on the first segment of a deal by the fall of 2025, aiming for bilateral trade worth $500 billion by 2030.

Indian trade minister Piyush Goyal was on a nearly week-long trip to the U.S. and on March 4 met Lutnick to pursue trade talks.

Comments

This is a Premium Article, available exclusively to our subscribers.

Read 500+ such News or articles every month by subscribing today!
Monthly

Free

Limited Access

Limited View

Free weekly E-Paper

Subscribe Now
Monthly

$10

Full Access

Unlimited View

Free weekly E-Paper

Free daily newsletter

Subscribe Now
Annual

$50

Full Access

Unlimited View

Free weekly E-Paper

Free daily newsletter

Subscribe Now
Start the conversation

Become a member of New India Abroad to start commenting.

Sign Up Now

Already have an account? Login