India denies pledge to lower tariffs following Trump’s statement

INDIA has said it has not committed to reducing import duties on US goods, following US president Donald Trump’s claim that New Delhi had agreed to "cut their tariffs way down."

Trump, in the early weeks of his second term, has taken a tough stance on global trade, imposing tariffs on several countries, including India, and accusing trading partners of unfair practices.

Last week, Trump criticised India's tariffs, calling them "massive" and saying, "You can't sell anything into India, it is almost restrictive." He added, "They have agreed, by the way, they want to cut their tariffs way down now because somebody is finally exposing them for what they have done."

However, a report in The Times of India on Tuesday quoted the Indian government as saying "no commitments had been made to the US on the issue."

The government has sought time until September to address the concerns repeatedly raised by the US president, the report added.

India's commerce secretary Sunil Barthwal said both countries were working on a long-term bilateral trade agreement rather than focusing only on immediate tariff adjustments.

Prime minister Narendra Modi, who visited the White House last month, has said India and the US will work on a "mutually beneficial trade agreement" to be finalised "very soon."

Trump, who has previously spoken of his strong rapport with Modi, has described their relationship as a "special bond."

The US remains a key market for India's information technology and services sectors, while Washington has made significant military hardware sales to New Delhi in recent years.

Trump is expected to visit India later this year for a summit of the Quad, a strategic grouping that includes the US, India, Japan, and Australia.

(With inputs from AFP)