Trump says there will be a 25% tariff on India
President Donald Trump on Tuesday warned that tariffs on Indian imports could rise to 25% if the U.S. and India fail to finalize a long-awaited trade deal.
“They are going to pay 25%,” Trump said. When a reporter asked if the tariffs would fall in the 20% to 25% range, Trump replied, “Yeah, I think so. India has been—they’re my friends.”
U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer told CNBC on Monday that reaching a deal with India would still require more dialogue between the two nations. “They have expressed strong interest in opening portions of their market,” Greer said. “We of course are willing to continue talking to them. But I think we need some more negotiations on that with our Indian friends to see how ambitious they want to be.”
Trump has pushed for more open foreign markets in recent trade agreements, but neither side has publicly identified the major obstacles preventing a deal. India’s commerce minister last week expressed optimism that an agreement could be reached before Trump’s August 1 deadline.
Although Trump hasn’t yet sent India a formal letter threatening new tariffs—as he has with more than a dozen other countries—he had previously set a 26% tariff on Indian imports back on April 2, before pausing the measure. He’s long described the trade relationship as “very tough” and has repeatedly criticized India for what he views as unfair trade practices, especially its high tariffs.
“They charge more tariffs than any other country,” Trump said on February 13, just hours before meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. “You’re not treating us right,” he reportedly told Modi at the time.
The Trump administration has also taken issue with India’s non-tariff trade barriers, such as digital service taxes and what it describes as “uniquely burdensome” regulations on foreign imports, including excessive product testing requirements.
In 2024, the U.S. imported $87 billion in goods from India, including pharmaceuticals, tech equipment like smartphones, and apparel, according to Commerce Department data. India, in turn, imported $42 billion worth of goods from the U.S.
Despite repeated claims from Trump and his officials that a deal with India was imminent, final terms have remained elusive. In May, Trump claimed India had agreed to impose zero tariffs on U.S. exports—a statement Indian officials immediately denied.
“India is the highest—one of the highest tariff nations in the world,” Trump said during a May 15 roundtable with business leaders in Doha, Qatar. “It’s very hard to sell into India, and they’ve offered us a deal where, basically, they’re willing to literally charge us no tariff.”
Ask ChatGPT