Mint Quick Edit | Trump’s at it again, sending mixed signals
Summary
- How the US President is disposed towards India is hard to decode. He has again called us out for our tariffs. While we do need to ease trade barriers, the aim must be to boost Indian competitiveness.
Signals from Washington are proving hard to decode. What should we make of its disposition towards India? On one hand, US President Donald Trump’s statement of a likely visit as early as next month by Prime Minister Narendra Modi underlines the importance of bilateral ties.
But Trump followed his cordial words by naming India as a big user of trade barriers. “China is a tremendous tariff maker, and India and Brazil, and so many other countries," he reportedly said, before asserting that he would put “America first."
Also Read: Will Trump’s trade tariffs help or harm America?
Trump’s tariff threats have mostly been aimed at US neighbours Mexico and Canada, apart from China. But he did brand India as “tariff king" along the way, so his latest mention isn’t much of a surprise. Trump’s use of tariff threats as a bargaining tool is clear from the way he got Colombia to buckle under his demands of it.
Also Read: The US, China and India must pursue policies aimed at the common global good
What exactly he may want of India is unclear, but he has spoken of reciprocal duty rates. This may mean the US will levy the same charge on Indian imports that India levies on US wares. Now, India does need to lower its import duties, but this must be aimed at making Indian products more globally competitive, not at pleasing Trump.
Also Read: Adapt to a Trumpian world order in a way that makes India great
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