Donald Trump blasts India over tariffs on US products

New Delhi: Ahead of trade talks between the two countries, United States President Donald Trump hit out at India on Tuesday saying its tariffs on American products are “no longer acceptable”.

“India has long had a field day putting tariffs on American products. No longer acceptable!” President Trump said in a tweet, reiterating his complaint against India with regard to high duties on American goods.

President Trump has been constantly complaining about India’s “tremendously high” duties on US products and has even described the country as “Tariff King.”

His statement comes days before the two countries are set to resume their bilateral trade talks. Senior officials of the US Trade Representative (USTR) will be in New Delhi for the trade talks next week. Also, later this week, US commerce secretary Wilbur Ross and energy secretary Rick Perry are scheduled to address a major India centric conference in Washington DC.

Though trade is an important part of the booming bilateral relationship, a row over market access and tariffs has escalated in recent months, leading to fears of a protracted dispute.

Mr Trump’s tweet on Tuesday follows a meeting he had with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on June 28, on the sidelines of the G-20 summit in Japan, where the two leaders aired their concerns over the bilateral trade disputes and agreed for a meeting of their commerce ministers to sort out the issues.

 A day before his meeting with PM Modi in Osaka, Mr Trump had sought withdrawal of tariffs imposed on 28 American goods. “I look forward to speaking with Prime Minister Modi about the fact that India, for years having put very high tariffs against the United States, just recently increased the tariffs even further. This is unacceptable and the tariffs must be withdrawn!” Mr Trump had tweeted.

India had on June 21 imposed higher duties on 28 products from the US, including almond, pulses and walnut, after the US withdrew tariff concessions on certain Indian products, thus hiking customs duties on steel and aluminium products, among others.

President Trump had terminated India’s designation as a beneficiary developing nation under the key Generalized System of Preference (GSP) trade programme from June 5 after determining that New Delhi has not assured the US that it will provide “equitable and reasonable access” to its markets.

Mr Trump said that the preferential status had allowed India to sell goods worth $5.6 billion duty-free. The move was in line with his policy of reducing trade deficits — equalising import and export between the US and others nations.

The GSP is the largest and oldest US trade preference programme and is designed to promote economic development by allowing duty-free entry for thousands of products from designated beneficiary countries.

After India slapped higher duties on American products, Mr Trump demanded that India withdraw retaliatory tariffs imposed by it, calling the duties “unacceptable.”

Trade between India and US was worth $142.1 billion in 2018, with India having a surplus of $24.2 billion.

The US is also upset with India over its plans to restrict cross-border data flows and impose stricter rules on e-commerce that hurt US firms operating in India.

 Mr Trump, as part of his “America First” policy, has been trying to reduce trade deficits with several countries. He is also in the middle of a trade war with China that the two nations are trying to dilute by jumpstarting the stalled trade negotiations.