Overview
- U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said negotiators have identified the remaining sticking points but that a final India–U.S. trade deal is not imminent, after talks on the sidelines of the G20 trade ministers' meeting.
- India’s commerce minister Piyush Goyal told the G20 that India does not have structural excess capacity in the sectors flagged by the U.S. and demanded that any corrective steps be based on specific evidence and follow WTO rules.
- The Office of the USTR has two Section 301 probes that shape the talks: a forced‑labour inquiry that resulted in a 10% duty in July and a separate excess‑capacity investigation that remains open and influential at the G20 discussions.
- Bilateral diplomacy continues beyond Washington, with Canada and India pushing CEPA negotiations toward a year‑end goal and Canada planning a 300‑member trade mission to India this month to deepen commercial ties.
- India is expanding free‑trade relationships to cover roughly 75–80% of global GDP as part of a strategy to lock in market access and diversify supply chains, a push that could blunt unilateral measures and reshape where firms locate production.