NEW DELHI— U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Sunday indicated that Washington is on the verge of finalizing multiple trade deals, as a flurry of last-minute proposals has arrived from several countries ahead of the looming July 9 tariff deadline.
“My mailbox was full last night with a lot of new offers, a lot of new proposals… It’s going to be a busy couple of days,” Bessent told CNBC, signaling a wave of potential trade announcements from the Donald Trump administration.
Bessent added that President Trump plans to send letters to several U.S. trading partners, warning that failure to finalize agreements could result in a rollback to earlier tariff levels. “President Trump’s going to be sending letters to some of our trading partners saying that, if you don’t move things along, then on August 1, you will boomerang back to your April 2 tariff level. So I think we’re going to see a lot of deals very quickly,” he said, according to media reports.
Trump has made clear that starting as early as Friday, the U.S. will begin notifying countries of new tariff levels unless agreements are reached. “I’d rather just do a simple deal where you can maintain it and control it. You’re going to pay a 20 percent or 30 percent tariff, and we’re going to be sending some letters out, starting probably tomorrow, maybe 10 a day, to various countries, saying what they’re going to pay to do business with the U.S.,” the President said.
The Trump administration has already announced several trade deals, including with China and Vietnam. Last month, Trump also mentioned that the U.S. and India “may sign an agreement that will open up India for U.S. goods.”
India’s negotiating team, led by chief negotiator Rajesh Agrawal, recently returned from Washington after a round of trade talks that ended without a final agreement. A key sticking point remains U.S. demands for greater access to India’s agricultural and dairy markets—areas India views as sensitive due to the potential impact on small farmers.
Despite the deadlock, there remains a possibility that an interim agreement could be reached at the highest political level before the July 9 deadline. Without a deal, a 26 percent increase in U.S. tariffs on Indian exports is set to take effect.
India is seeking relief from these tariffs while also pressing for broader market access for its own labor-intensive exports such as textiles, leather, and footwear.
The Indian delegation was in Washington from June 26 to July 2 in pursuit of a limited trade agreement with the U.S. that could stave off the tariff hike and lay the groundwork for a more comprehensive deal in the future. (Source: IANS)
