US tariff impacts: India looking for a win-win situation, says Rajesh Agrawal

India is committed to taking forward the trade deal with the United States provided it is a win-win proposition, Rajesh Agrawal, Commerce Secretary-designate, Government of India, said on Friday.

Mr. Agrawal was addressing online a round-table discussion organised by the Gulati Institute of Finance and Taxation (GIFT) and the Kerala State Planning Board on ‘The impact of US penal tariff with a special focus on Kerala.’

Pointing out that the trade discussions with the US are continuing, he said that the emphasis is on ensuring tariffs that are comparatively advantageous to India’s export-sensitive sectors so that the industry can benefit by leveraging the US market. “We are well poised to take this forward and we have to just wait and see how the developments take place over the next few weeks,” he said.

Overall, about 55% of Indian exports to the US will be impacted by the combined 50% tariff on Indian exports to the US, which include the 25% ‘penal tariff’ for India importing oil from Russia. “From our perspective, these tariffs are unfair, unreasonable. India is not the only country buying Russian oil. China buys more Russian oil than us and they are not facing penal tariffs,” Mr. Agrawal said.

To soften the impact of the US tariff policies on India, the Centre is working with the industry to explore export promotion options and diversification. Whether domestic markets can be encouraged for products that are heavily impacted is also being explored, he said. Mr. Agrawal also observed that despite the adverse scenario, the growth trajectory of the Indian economy continues to remain robust.