'For years, India took advantage': Trump on India-US trade ties
What's the story
United States President Donald Trump has expressed confidence that a trade agreement between Washington and New Delhi will be finalized soon. Speaking at the White House, he called Prime Minister Narendra Modi a "good friend" and emphasized their strong relationship as a key factor in resolving ongoing tariff disputes. "We will get to a deal because I like your prime minister a lot...He is a good friend of mine," Trump said before going on to refer to past trade imbalances.
Past
'We are making a lot of money with India'
"For years, India took advantage of the US. They charged tremendous amounts of tariffs to our companies, and we didn't charge them anything," Trump said, citing the case of Harley-Davidson motorcycles. "In the past, they wouldn't let Harley-Davidson sell its motorcycles. They charged...200 percent tariff. They ended up going to India and building their own plants, which is unfortunate that that happened." "Now it is the exact reverse and we are making a lot of money with India," the said.
Ongoing negotiations
US and India held 4 days of trade talks
Trump's remarks come after four days of trade talks in New Delhi from June 1-4. The discussions, led by the United States Trade Representative (USTR) and Indian officials, covered issues such as trade in goods, customs procedures, non-tariff barriers and economic security cooperation. Both sides described the talks as productive and are working toward an interim agreement along with a Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA).
Trade tensions
Negotiations complicated by US review of tariffs
However, the negotiations are complicated by a US review of tariffs under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974. The review affects 60 economies, including India, over concerns about imports made with forced labor. Countries with restrictions on such imports could face tariffs up to 10%, while those without could be hit with duties as high as 12.5%. The countries included in this review are India, China, Japan, South Korea, the United Kingdom, Bangladesh, and Vietnam.