India-US Trade Relations
Structural Overview
India and the United States are among each other's most significant trading partners. Bilateral goods trade stood at approximately $130 billion in 2024-25. Historically, India maintained high import tariffs as a legacy of its import-substitution industrialisation (ISI) era. The US has long pushed India to reduce non-tariff barriers, lower agricultural tariffs, and improve intellectual property (IP) protections. India's trade surplus with the US — estimated at around $45 billion annually — has been a recurring source of bilateral friction under the Trump administration's "reciprocal trade" doctrine.
- India was removed from the US Generalised System of Preferences (GSP) in 2019 under Trump's first term (value: ~$5.6 billion in duty-free exports annually)
- The US is India's largest goods export destination; key Indian exports include pharmaceuticals, IT services, textiles, gems and jewellery
- Key US exports to India: aircraft, machinery, medical devices, agricultural commodities (soybean, cotton)
- President Trump issued "Liberation Day" tariffs (April 2, 2025), imposing sweeping global tariffs justified under IEEPA (International Emergency Economic Powers Act)
- India's February 2026 interim deal reduced the IEEPA-based reciprocal tariff from 50% to 18% — well below the baseline of 26% initially threatened on "Liberation Day"
● Tracked since February 03, 2026 · last seen June 14, 2026 · updates as the daily brief publishes
Plus 3 earlier mentions since February 03, 2026.