Commerce Secretary Sunil Barthwal on Tuesday said that the reciprocal tariffs are both a challenge and an opportunity for India, as the government is already negotiating a bilateral trade deal with the US.
In a new report released on April 14, UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD) is amping up calls that the poorest and most vulnerable economies be exempt from "reciprocal tariffs".
China has called on the United States to correct its mistakes by "completely cancelling" its tariffs, describing them as "wrong practice" and urging Washington to return to a "path of mutual respect" towards Beijing, France 24 reported.
Textile importers based in the US are reaching out to Indian exporters, asking them to bear the costs that may emanate from the US tariffs going forward, two industry executives told ANI.
Guidance posted by Customs and Border Protection, which collects duties on imports, indicated roughly 20 products that would be exempted from reciprocal tariffs. The electronic items include smartphones, computers, semiconductor chips and routers.
The US crackdown on low-value Chinese e-commerce shipments has opened a rare and potentially lucrative window for Indian exporters, said GTRI in a report.
"Given, India's price competitiveness and supportive government policies, we expect GDP to see only a 0.1 per cent impact," said PHDCCI in a statement.
Dr Huzaifa Khorakiwala, Executive Director of Wockhardt Limited, on Saturday said that the fall of US reciprocal tariffs on Indian pharmaceutical products will pose a significant challenge to the industry.
Evan A Feigenbaum, Vice President for studies at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, believes that there is a lot of pressure from the financial markets on the US administration to change its course.
The pause in reciprocal tariffs by the US adminstration offers Indian businesses a short-term advantage--especially in sectors like textiles, leather, engineering, and electronics, where India competes directly with China, said Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI) Founder, Ajay Srivastava
Indian stock indices closed handsomely higher on Friday, supported by the Trump's decision to pause the reciprocal tariffs on dozens of countries, including India, for 90 days.