Overview
- Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal hosted U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and Ambassador Sergio Gor in New Delhi, with both sides calling the discussions productive.
- The meeting followed the postponement of India’s chief negotiator Darpan Jain’s Washington trip that was meant to finalise the legal text of an interim trade pact.
- Officials say the interim framework agreed in early February remains in principle, including a path to lower extra U.S. tariffs on Indian goods toward about 18%, but legalisation is deferred.
- Goyal said New Delhi is in wait‑and‑watch mode and highlighted a rebalancing clause in the February 6 joint statement that allows adjustments if circumstances change.
- After the Supreme Court invalidated emergency tariff authority, the U.S. imposed a temporary 10% global import surcharge for 150 days, with officials signaling a possible move to 15% under other statutes, though no such order has been issued.