New Delhi– India’s Commerce Secretary Rajesh Agrawal and US Deputy Trade Representative Rick Switzer held discussions on Wednesday on the proposed bilateral trade agreement between the two countries.
“The two sides exchanged views on matters related to India-US trade and economic ties including on the ongoing negotiations for a mutually beneficial Bilateral Trade Agreement,” the Commerce Ministry’s Department of Commerce said in a post on X.
Switzer arrived in New Delhi with a team of US officials for two days of trade discussions with their Indian counterparts.
Before meeting Commerce Ministry officials, Switzer held talks with Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri. According to the MEA spokesperson, their discussions covered the strong India–US economic and technology partnership, ongoing trade negotiations, and opportunities to boost two-way trade and strengthen resilient supply chains.
Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal expressed optimism ahead of the official meetings, saying that “talks are continuously progressing with the US as India is moving ahead towards signing a bilateral trade agreement”.
Agrawal said last month that India and the US are “nearing closure” on the first tranche of the proposed Bilateral Trade Agreement. He told journalists that the two sides have been holding regular virtual rounds of discussions and that the initial stage of negotiations is progressing quickly, even though no formal deadline has been set.
US President Donald Trump signaled support in November for strengthening US-India relations, renewing hopes that a bilateral trade agreement between the two countries could be finalized soon. Trump told reporters at the White House that his discussions with Prime Minister Narendra Modi were “going great” and that a visit to New Delhi could take place next year.
He added that he plans to “lower tariffs” imposed on India “at some point,” suggesting that a breakthrough could be on the horizon.
“I think we’re pretty close to doing a deal (with India) that’s good for everybody,” Trump said during the ceremony for swearing in Sergio Gor as the new US Ambassador to India.
However, India has emphasized that it will not compromise on the interests of farmers, the dairy sector, or workers in any trade agreements with foreign partners.
India has also increased purchases of oil and gas from the US in an effort to reduce its trade surplus, an issue that had featured in earlier talks. In this context, Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas Hardeep Singh Puri recently announced that India’s public sector oil companies have finalized a one-year structured contract to import around 2.2 million tonnes of LPG per year from the US Gulf Coast beginning in 2026. This accounts for nearly 10 percent of India’s annual LPG imports and marks the first such structured LPG agreement with the US for the Indian market.
Puri described the move “as a historic development,” saying it opens one of the world’s largest and fastest-growing LPG markets to the United States. (Source: IANS)
