Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal on Wednesday said negotiations with the United States on the proposed bilateral trade agreement are progressing steadily, with the visiting American delegation currently in New Delhi for talks.
Speaking at the Pravasi Rajasthani Divas, Goyal confirmed ongoing discussions and indicated he may meet the US team during their visit. The delegation is led by Deputy US Trade Representative (USTR) Rick Switzer, who is holding two-day negotiations with his Indian counterpart, Rajesh Agrawal.
The US’ chief negotiator, Assistant USTR for South and Central Asia Brendan Lynch, is set to conduct detailed discussions with India’s chief negotiator Darpan Jain.
The visit comes at a critical time as both nations aim to finalise the first tranche of the pact. This is the US officials’ second visit following Washington’s imposition of a 25% tariff and an additional 25% penalty on Indian goods over India’s purchase of Russian crude oil. Their previous visit took place on September 16.
Goyal himself had travelled to Washington twice this year—in May and again on September 22—for trade talks. India is hopeful of reaching a framework trade deal by the end of 2025, with Commerce Secretary Rajesh Agrawal earlier expressing optimism about resolving reciprocal tariff issues impacting Indian exporters.
India and the US are currently pursuing two parallel negotiations: a framework deal addressing tariff challenges and a comprehensive trade agreement. Since the two countries directed officials to begin talks in February, six rounds of negotiations have been held. The agreement aims to more than double bilateral trade to $500 billion by 2030, up from the current $191 billion.
The US remained India’s largest trading partner for the fourth straight year in 2024–25, with bilateral trade standing at $131.84 billion, including $86.5 billion in exports. However, exporters warn that rising US tariffs have started to weigh on shipments, with Indian exports to the US declining for the second consecutive month in October—down 8.58% to $6.3 billion.
