INDIA and the United States are poised to initiate formal negotiations on a bilateral trade agreement (BTA) from April 23, with discussions spanning 19 key chapters, including goods, services, and customs facilitation, official sources confirmed on Friday.
The high-level talks are expected to last three days, with Rajesh Agrawal, Additional Secretary in the Department of Commerce, appointed as India’s chief negotiator. Agrawal was named the next Commerce Secretary earlier this week and is slated to take charge on 1 October.
Ahead of the dialogue, a separate Indian team is scheduled to travel to the United States next week to iron out outstanding issues and lay the groundwork for the formal launch of negotiations.
The talks come in the wake of US President Donald Trump’s announcement of a 90-day pause on tariffs, declared on 9 April, offering both sides a limited but significant window to advance the dialogue.
“The three-month pause offers a unique opportunity to make substantial progress,” an official source said.
Commerce Secretary Sunil Barthwal had earlier, on 15 April, highlighted India’s resolve to expedite the agreement, asserting New Delhi’s commitment to “fast-tracking the deal and following a path of trade liberalisation.”
The preliminary phase of the negotiations is expected to conclude by September–October, with an ambitious target of increasing bilateral trade from the present USD 191 billion to USD 500 billion by 2030.
Washington is reportedly seeking greater market access for industrial goods, electric vehicles, wines, dairy, petrochemicals, and agricultural products such as apples and tree nuts.
New Delhi, on its part, is pressing for tariff relief on labour-intensive exports including textiles, gems and jewellery, leather, plastics, and seafood.
India’s leading exports to the United States in 2024 included drug formulations and biologics (USD 8.1 billion), telecom instruments (USD 6.5 billion), precious stones (USD 5.3 billion), petroleum products (USD 4.1 billion), jewellery (USD 3.2 billion), cotton garments (USD 2.8 billion), and iron and steel products (USD 2.7 billion).
On the other hand, India’s major imports from the United States comprised crude oil (USD 4.5 billion), petroleum (USD 3.6 billion), coal and coke (USD 3.4 billion), cut and polished diamonds (USD 2.6 billion), electrical machinery (USD 1.4 billion), aircraft and parts (USD 1.3 billion), and gold (USD 1.3 billion).
