Amid worldwide backlash to the tariffs imposed by US President Donald Trump, US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer has told the Senate Finance Committee that nearly 50 countries have approached him and are willing to lower tariffs, including India. He said that Trump's tariff move is bearing fruit as more and more countries are ready for negotiations.

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“Nearly 50 countries have approached me personally to discuss the President's new policy and explore how to achieve reciprocity. And they've spoken with many members of the administration. Several of these, such as Argentina, Vietnam, India, and Israel, have suggested that they will reduce their tariffs and non-tariff barriers in line with the President's policy,” Greer said.

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Greer added that while the United States maintains an average 5 per cent tariff on agricultural goods, India’s average tariff stands at 39 per cent. India has been tariffed 26 per cent and is among the countries hit the hardest. The tariffs would come into effect starting Wednesday (Apr 9).

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The comments by Greer echo US National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett's disclosure over the weekend that more countries have reached out to the White House for trade negotiations.

"These obviously are welcome moves. Our large and persistent trade deficit has been over 30 years in the making, and it will not be resolved overnight, but all of this is in the right direction," Greer added. 

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India-US trade agreement 

Indian External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio discussed and agreed on the “early conclusion” of a Bilateral Trade Agreement on a call on Monday, which was the first discussion on trade between the two sides at the level of cabinet officials. Jaishankar shared a post on X regarding the conversation but there has not been any official word from the American side on the conversation.

 

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Trump have also not spoken yet after the announcement of the reciprocal tariffs.

The phone conversation between Jaishankar and Rubio came about a week after US assistant trade representative Brendan Lynch visited India. The two sides had agreed to finalise the first tranche of the agreement by the fall of 2025 at a meeting between PM Modi and Trump in February this year.

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(With inputs from agencies)