Union Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal on Thursday said a US negotiating team is expected to visit India in June to take forward talks on an interim bilateral trade agreement. A day after US Ambassador Sergio Gore met Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman to discuss strengthening economic ties.
Gore described his meeting with Sitharaman as “excellent” and said the discussion focused on advancing the US-India economic partnership. “From trade and investment to technology, defense and critical minerals, both our democracies achieve more when we work together,” he said in a post on X.
The ambassador’s comments come ahead of US Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s visit to India from May 23 and the possible visit of the US trade negotiation team next month. The proposed visit follows talks held in Washington in April, when an Indian negotiating team met their US counterparts for in-person discussions on the trade deal.
Asked whether Rubio would be accompanied by trade negotiators, Goyal said the negotiating team would not travel with the secretary of state, “but there are some plans for him to come next month.” Rubio is also expected to discuss cooperation in areas such as trade, defense and energy during his four-day visit to India.
India and the US are negotiating an interim BTA under a revised tariff framework after the US Supreme Court on February 20 struck down reciprocal tariffs imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA). Earlier on May 15, Commerce Secretary Rajesh Aggarwal had described the bilateral trade talks as positive and said that the two countries were working towards concluding an agreement at the appropriate time.
After Wednesday’s meeting between Sitharaman and Gore, the Finance Ministry said the two discussed India-US economic and financial partnership, fintech cooperation, investment opportunities and deepening bilateral cooperation. Sitharaman also congratulated the ambassador on the upcoming 250th anniversary of US independence, the ministry said in a post on Twitter.
Speaking at the annual leadership summit of the American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham), Goyal highlighted India’s economic growth prospects and said the country remains one of the most attractive investment destinations in the world despite global uncertainties.
“With 1.4 billion aspirational Indians and a strong ecosystem driven by innovation, R&D and enterprise, India will continue to be one of the fastest growing economies in the world,” he said.
Goyal said several major US companies have announced investments in India and estimated commitments from US industry at over $60 billion in the last six months.
“Look at the Amazon data center commitments, the Google data center commitments. My gut feeling is that the US and India are really working as natural partners. We complement each other,” he said.