India-US communication channels remain open to resolve tariff dispute: Sources

Hours into the implementation of the Trump 2.0 administration’s additional 25 per cent levy on imports from India into the US, Indian government sources said that communication channels remain open between both sides to resolve the ongoing tariff dispute between them. With effect from 9:31 am India time, the total tariff on Indian exports into the US reached 50 per cent. 

There is no need to panic over the US-India trade situation, said the official sources. 

They also said that the impact of the fresh tariff action is “not as exaggerated or projected” given India’s diversified export base.

This is a temporary phase in a long-term relationship, said the sources.  

The implementation of the additional duty follows the collapse of trade talks between New Delhi and Washington that went on for several weeks without a deal.

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Many economists say the new tariffs are set to escalate trade tensions between the world's largest and fifth largest economies. 

Annual trade between India and the US -- the world's fifth-largest and the largest economies respectively -- is recorded at more than $190 billion. 

The disagreement between both sides has raised questions about the wider relationship between India and the US, important security partners that share concerns about China. 

US-India inter-sessional dialogue 

Earlier, the US administration said on Tuesday that both sides engaged in the latest round if inter-sessional dialogue virtually on Tuesday. 

Senior Bureau Official for South and Central Asian Affairs Bethany P Morrison and Acting Assistant Secretary of Defense for Indo-Pacific Security Affairs Jedidiah P Royal co-chaired the discussions with their Indian counterparts Additional Secretary Nagaraj Naidu Kakanur and Joint Secretary Vishwesh Negi.

The dialogue covered trade and investment, civil-nuclear cooperation, critical minerals, counternarcotics, counterterrorism, and regional security, read the American statement. 

Both sides engaged on talks on advancing a new ten-year framework for the US-India Major Defense Partnership under the broader COMPACT initiative, it noted.