India is raising tariffs on US goods in retaliation for Washington’s decision to strip New Delhi of preferential access to the American market.
The increase in tariffs on a range of goods, including almonds, apples, and walnuts, would take effect on June 16, the commerce ministry said. The trade spat has cast a shadow over the deepening India-US security relationship, designed to counter China’s economic and military influence in the region.
US secretary of state Mike Pompeo is scheduled to hold talks with his Indian counterpart Subrahmanyam Jaishankar ahead of the G20 summit in Japan later this month, where Mr Trump and Narendra Modi are expected to meet.
US-India bilateral trade reached $142bn in 2018, a seven-fold increase since 2001, according to the US State Department. But US president Donald Trump has repeatedly criticised India’s protectionist policies, describing its tariffs on goods such as Harley-Davidson motorcycles as unfair.
Via Financial Times
