Overview

• Commerce minister Piyush Goyal said negotiation teams remain in contact and are working toward a first‑phase bilateral trade agreement by November.
• He ruled out retaliatory tariffs, calling the dispute a temporary “blip” and asserting the US–India partnership will endure.
• To cushion exporters, the government is cutting GST on hundreds of goods from September 22 and has tasked missions in about 50 countries to find new buyers, alongside outreach to large domestic retailers.
• India reiterated red lines in the talks, refusing to open agriculture and dairy and prioritizing farmers, fishermen, MSMEs and religious sensitivities while maintaining strategic autonomy on Russia.
• The US duties total 50%—a 25% base plus a 25% surcharge tied to Russian crude—and now face a Supreme Court petition after a Federal Circuit ruling, with estimates warning roughly $48 billion in exports are at risk.