Piyush Goyal to visit US for trade talks from May 16: What's on the agenda?

Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal will travel to Washington on May 16 to lead high-level talks with US officials on a proposed bilateral trade agreement (BTA), a step aimed at deepening India-US trade relations.

 

The four-day discussions, scheduled from May 17 to 20, will involve key meetings with US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick. According to an official, the two countries are working on an interim trade arrangement focused on goods to achieve “early mutual wins” before finalising the first phase of the larger deal by September or October this year.

 

Ahead of the ministerial meetings, top negotiators from both sides will hold working-level discussions from May 19 to 22. India’s Chief BTA Negotiator Rajesh Agrawal and the US Assistant Trade Representative for South and Central Asia Brendan Lynch have already laid some groundwork in talks held last month.   

 

What is on the agenda?

 

The talks come at a critical time, with India pushing for duty concessions on exports from its key labour-intensive sectors such as textiles, gems and jewellery, leather, chemicals, shrimps, bananas, and grapes. Meanwhile, the US is expected to seek lower tariffs on industrial goods, electric vehicles, wines, petrochemicals, dairy products, and agricultural items like apples and tree nuts.

 

Both nations have also agreed on a framework that includes around 19 focus areas for the BTA, covering issues like tariffs, goods, services, rules of origin, customs facilitation, and non-tariff barriers.

 

India is also likely to raise the issue of retaliatory tariffs on some US products, which were in response to US duties on Indian steel and aluminium. With a temporary pause on additional US tariffs (up to 26 per cent) in place until July 9, both sides are looking to use this 90-day window to fast-track progress.

 

Wider trade context

 

The US continues to be India’s largest trading partner for the fourth consecutive year. In 2024-25, bilateral trade stood at $131.84 billion. The US accounts for nearly 18 per cent of India’s total exports and over 10 per cent of its overall merchandise trade.

 

However, the growing trade surplus in India’s favour — $41.18 billion in 2024-25 — remains a concern for Washington. US officials have also flagged non-tariff barriers that restrict access to Indian markets for some American goods.

 

[With inputs from PTI]