US Tariffs: ‘26% of US tariffs will hit the country’s exporters, but India’s situation better’, FIEO statement

New Delhi| India’s domestic players (exporters) will undoubtedly be affected by the 26 percent import duty (tariff) imposed by US President Donald Trump. However, India’s situation is better than other countries. This was said by Ajay Sahay, Director General and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Federation of Indian Export Organizations (FIEO).

Sahay expressed hope that negotiations on the proposed bilateral trade agreement between India and the US will be completed soon, which will reduce the impact of these counter tariffs. Talking to news agency ‘PTI’, he said, ‘We have to assess its impact. But if we look at the tariffs imposed on other countries, India has been kept in the low rate range. Our situation is better than major competing countries like Vietnam, China, Indonesia, Myanmar. These tariffs will certainly affect us, but we are in a better position than many other countries

The US President has imposed this tariff because he says that India imposes higher tariffs on American products. India imposes 56 per cent tariffs on products coming from the US, including currency manipulation and trade barriers, he said, showing a chart. The U.S. has decided to impose a 26 percent concessional counter-tariff on India. The chart showed tariffs imposed on behalf of countries such as the European Union, India, China and Britain, and the reciprocal tariffs now imposed on these countries.

Trump said, ‘India is a very difficult country, very difficult. The Prime Minister (Narendra Modi) has just left from here. He is my good friend, but I told him – You are my friend, but you are not understanding us properly. He imposes a 52 per cent tariff on us The U.S. was India’s largest trading partner from fiscal year 2021-22 to 2023-24. The US accounts for 18 per cent of India’s total exports (6.22 per cent of imports and 10.73 per cent of bilateral trade).

India, along with the US, had a trade surplus (difference of exports and imports) of $35.32 billion in 2023-24. Previously, it was $27.7 billion in 2022-23, $32.85 billion in 2021-22, $22.73 billion in 2020-21, and $17.26 billion in 2019-20.