Representative image of India-US trade
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India and the US have commenced trade talks on Tuesday to iron out issues in the wake of steep tariffs that have created uncertainties for exporters, reports PTI.
The delegation led by Brendan Lynch, the Assistant US Trade Representative for South and Central Asia, landed in New Delhi on Monday night after a visit to Dhaka.
This is the first visit by a high-ranking US trade official after the imposition of a 25 per cent tariff and an additional 25 per cent penalty on Indian goods entering the American market for buying Russian crude oil.
"The trade talks have started," PTI quoted an official saying.
India has described the steep 50 per cent tariff as unfair and unreasonable. The negotiations remained stalled for a few weeks as the relations between New Delhi and Washington, D.C. came under stress, as Trump imposed a 50% tax on all imports from India to the US.
In February, the leaders of the two countries directed officials to negotiate a proposed Bilateral Trade Agreement ( BTA). It was planned to conclude the first tranche of the pact by the fall of 2025. So far, five rounds of negotiations have been held, and the talks for the sixth round, which were scheduled from August 25-29, were postponed following the imposition of the high import duties.
With PTI inputs