NEW DELHI, India — India and the United States are in the advanced stages of negotiating a bilateral trade agreement, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said on Monday, signaling progress in efforts to strengthen economic ties between the two countries.
Speaking to reporters, Goyal said India has already finalized free trade agreements with three members of the Five Eyes intelligence alliance — Australia, the United Kingdom and New Zealand — and is now preparing to re-engage Canada on a separate trade pact. The United States and Canada are the other two members of the grouping.
“We are soon going to launch discussions for the terms of reference with Canada also,” Goyal said, adding that the move reflects India’s growing strategic importance in global geopolitics.
The minister’s comments come amid ongoing talks between Indian officials and a U.S. delegation led by Deputy Trade Representative Rick Switzer, who visited New Delhi earlier this month.
Commerce Secretary Rajesh Agrawal has said India is “very close” to finalizing an initial framework agreement with the United States aimed at reducing reciprocal tariffs. Speaking at a press conference on December 15, Agrawal said the two sides have completed six rounds of negotiations covering both a proposed Bilateral Trade Agreement and an interim arrangement to lower tariffs.
“We are very close to closing the initial framework deal, but I don’t want to put a timeline to it,” Agrawal said. He added that there is a reasonable expectation that an interim agreement could be reached to ease steep tariffs on most Indian exports.
Goyal reiterated that while negotiations are progressing well, India is not working toward any fixed deadline. Referring to Switzer’s visit, he said discussions were substantive but emphasized that trade agreements must be mutually beneficial.
“We had very good substantive discussions. But I have said on record that a deal is only done when both sides stand to benefit. We should never negotiate with deadlines because you tend to make mistakes then,” Goyal said.
Agrawal said both sides exchanged views on a wide range of issues related to bilateral trade and economic relations, including the structure of a mutually beneficial trade agreement.
U.S. President Donald Trump recently told reporters at the White House that his talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi were “going great” and indicated that a visit to New Delhi could take place next year. Trump also said he plans to lower tariffs imposed on India “at some point,” raising expectations of a breakthrough in the negotiations.
However, Indian officials have made it clear that the country will not compromise on the interests of farmers, the dairy sector or workers in any trade deal.
India has also stepped up purchases of oil and gas from the United States as part of efforts to reduce its trade surplus. In this context, Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Hardeep Singh Puri recently announced that India’s public sector oil companies have concluded a one-year structured contract to import around 2.2 million tonnes per annum of liquefied petroleum gas from the U.S. Gulf Coast during 2026.
The deal represents close to 10 percent of India’s annual LPG imports and marks the first structured LPG contract with the United States for the Indian market. Puri described the agreement as a historic development, noting that one of the world’s largest and fastest-growing LPG markets has now opened up to U.S. suppliers. (Source: IANS)
