The central government is set to brief the Parliamentary Standing Committee on External Affairs on Monday about developments in the country’s foreign policy, covering aspects such as the potential impact and the steps undertaken to counter the recent changes in US trade policy as well as US-India trade negotiations. The briefing is scheduled to start at 4 pm.
The briefing will be led by representatives from the Ministry of External Affairs and the Ministry of Commerce and Industry.
The Parliamentary Standing Committee is headed by Congress MP Shashi Tharoor.
The panel had raised several questions concerning India-US trade, including India’s stance in trade negotiations and India’s foreign policy.
The briefing will also detail progress in trade negotiations with the US.
The development comes at a time when US President Donald Trump has doubled an existing duty of 25 per cent on goods impored from India to 50 per cent over India’s oil trade with Russia.
The doubling of duty followed the failure of negotiators from India and the US to arrive at a trade deal.
Trump tariff set to rise to 50% with effect from August 28
The increased duty of 50 per cent is set to take effect on August 28. With that, Indian exports into the US are set to attract the the highest levied on any US trading partner, besides Brazil.
Some analysts describe the 47th US president’s move as the most serious downturn in US-India relations since the onset of his term in January.
The doubling of duty is set to impact Indian exporters significantly. Last year, India’s exports to the US amounted to nearly $87 billion, making America the Asian country’s largest export market.
Annual trade between both sides is recorded at more than $190 billion.
The Ministry of External Affairs has described the tariff hike as “extremely unfortunate”, stating that India will take all necessary steps to protect its national interests.
A sharp drop in India’s exports into the US could cause India’s GDP growth to slip below the RBI’s annual forecast of 6.5 per cent, say some analysts.
