Amid growing uncertainties following the US Supreme Court decision to toss President Donald Trump’s ‘Liberation Day Tariffs’, the Indian government has decided to reschedule the trip of the trade team to Washington, DC.
Amid growing uncertainties following the
US Supreme Court decision to toss President Donald Trump’s ‘Liberation Day Tariffs’, the Indian government has decided to reschedule the trip of the trade team to Washington, DC. The Indian delegation was scheduled to visit the United States to finalise the legal text of the interim framework of the trade deal.
In light of the court’s ruling,
Commerce Department officials said that the two sides viewed that the visit by Chief Negotiator Darpan Jain and his team should be rescheduled until the latest developments and their implications have been evaluated, The Times of India reported.
Jain was supposed to hold three-day consultations with the American delegation, starting from Monday. The meetings were taking place ahead of US Trade Representative
Jamieson Greer’s visit to India to sign the agreement. So far, the two sides have agreed on the broad framework, which reflects understanding but no mutually binding commitment.
However, the US court’s ruling against the reciprocal tariffs and subsequent baseline levies imposed by Trump has complicated the situation. Overall, the change in Jain’s travel plans indicates that the Indian government is watching the implications of the US Supreme Court ruling, providing more room to negotiate better terms.
The complicated ball game
Following the US court’s ruling, Malaysia and Indonesia, which had finalised agreements with the US on tariffs, have emphasised that nothing has been notified. According to the New York Times, South Korea said that judicial disapproval of Trump’s tariffs has nullified its 15 per cent reciprocal tariff deal with the US.
Meanwhile, Trump on Friday said that the deal with India is still on and “
nothing changes”. Indian government officials, on the other hand, said that the legal analysis of US actions is underway, along with the assessment of the possible impact on trade and strategic ties.
It is pertient to note that, with an additional 15 per cent tariffs imposed by Trump under Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974, all countries are now at the same level, at least for 150 days. Yet the threat of further action by Trump, who is seen to have weaponised tariffs, remains. Amid the chaos, Geer indicated that the US President can also use Section 338 of the Tariff Act of 1930, which allows for up to 50 per cent tariffs on countries that “unreasonably discriminate” against US trade through tariffs or other measures.
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