India–US Trade Deal: US Releases Fact Sheet, Adds ‘Certain Pulses’ To Tariff Cuts

New Delhi: The US on Monday announced a framework for an interim agreement on a reciprocal, mutually beneficial trade deal. The White House released a fact sheet stating that India will eliminate or reduce tariffs on American industrial goods and a wide range of food and agricultural products, including “certain pulses”.

Why Is Mention Of “Certain Pulses” Important?

The mention of “certain pulses” in the White House fact sheet is important, as it was not included in the joint statement announced on February 6.

“India will eliminate or reduce tariffs on all US industrial goods and a wide range of US food and agricultural products, including dried distillers’ grains (DDGs), red sorghum, tree nuts, fresh and processed fruit, certain pulses, soybean oil, wine and spirits, and additional products,” the fact sheet read.

The fact sheet released by the White House was titled “The United States and India Announce Historic Trade Deal”. The US said the trade agreement would open up India’s market of more than 1.4 billion people to American goods.

“India will eliminate or reduce tariffs on all US industrial goods and a wide range of US food and agricultural products, including dried distillers’ grains (DDGs), red sorghum for animal feed, tree nuts, fresh and processed fruit, soybean oil, wine and spirits, and additional products,” read the earlier joint statement issued on February 6.

India-US Trade Deal

The India–US interim trade deal was announced on February 2 after months of negotiations amid tariff-related tensions. It provides for a reduction in reciprocal US tariffs on Indian goods to 18 per cent.

In a joint statement, both countries said they would move quickly to implement the framework while continuing discussions towards a comprehensive Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA).