$500 billion by 2030.. India and America are close to concluding a historic trade agreement economy

India and the United States are close to completing the first phase of their free trade agreement, in a move that may pave the way for a new phase of economic cooperation between the two countries after months of intense negotiations punctuated by disagreements over customs duties and trade sanctions.

The Indian Minister of Commerce, Piyush Goyal, announced that the discussions between the two sides had achieved significant progress, coinciding with the arrival of a new American delegation to New Delhi to complete a 3-day round of talks.

“We can say that 99% of the issues have been resolved,” Goyal told reporters.

He added: “I am confident that we will be able to conclude the first phase of this bilateral agreement,” explaining that the remaining controversial points do not go beyond limited technical details, saying: “Only some simple details remain, more like commas and periods in the text.”

These statements come after months of negotiations that took place in light of trade tensions between the two countries, especially with regard to US customs duties and Indian dealings with Russian oil.

Last week, the US Ambassador to India, Sergio Gore, expected the agreement to be signed “in the coming weeks,” indicating that a final understanding is close to being reached.

Last February, New Delhi and Washington agreed on an ambitious goal of raising the volume of annual trade exchange between the two countries to $500 billion by 2030, compared to current levels.

Fees and penalties hinder progress

Despite the progress achieved, the negotiations faced several obstacles during the past months, especially after the US Supreme Court canceled the customs increases that had been imposed by the administration of US President Donald Trump, which later prompted Washington to impose a new unilateral increase of 10% on some duties, targeting India in particular.

Last year, the Trump administration imposed 50% customs duties on Indian imports, justifying this by New Delhi’s continued purchase of Russian crude oil, which Washington considered an indirect contribution to financing the Russian war in Ukraine.

But the United States suspended those sanctions last March, seeking to limit the rise in global fuel prices resulting from the repercussions of the war in the Middle East.