The United States and India will move in the coming weeks to finalise an interim trade agreement, with the aim of locking in a broader Bilateral Trade Agreement that the White House says will deliver reciprocal market access and reduce long-standing tariff and regulatory barriers. In a fact sheet released days after Washington and New Delhi announced the framework in a joint statement, the administration portrayed the interim deal as a milestone in reshaping one of the world’s most consequential trading relationships, while signalling that difficult negotiations still lie ahead on services, investment and government procurement.
The fact sheet, titled ‘The United States and India Announce Historic Trade Deal (Interim Agreement)’, sets out a sweeping set of commitments attributed to India, including tariff cuts across US industrial exports and a wide range of agricultural goods, alongside pledges to increase purchases of American energy and technology products. It also frames the agreement as part of a wider effort to align economic security policies and reduce exposure to “non-market” practices by third countries.
White House: Interim Agreement to be finalised “in the coming weeks”
The White House said the interim agreement is not an end point but a bridge to a larger, more comprehensive Bilateral Trade Agreement.
“In the coming weeks, the United States and India will promptly implement this framework and work toward finalising the Interim Agreement with a view to concluding a mutually beneficial BTA to lock in benefits for American workers and businesses,” it said.
The statement comes after a joint announcement by the two governments outlining the framework for “reciprocal and mutually beneficial trade”. The fact sheet casts the deal as a “tangible path forward”, suggesting the administration views it as a template for reshaping trade ties with major partners under a stricter reciprocity doctrine.
India to cut tariffs on US industrial goods and key farm products
One of the centrepieces of the fact sheet is the claim that India will “eliminate or reduce tariffs on all US industrial goods” and on a large basket of food and agricultural imports.
The list includes dried distillers’ grains, red sorghum, tree nuts, fresh and processed fruit, certain pulses, soybean oil, wine and spirits, and additional products. The administration also said India has committed to purchasing more American goods, including energy and technology products.
According to the fact sheet, India has also committed to buy more American products and purchase over USD 500 billion of US energy, information and communication technology, agricultural, coal, and other products.
Trump administration highlights India’s “high tariffs” and non-tariff barriers
The fact sheet uses unusually direct language in describing India’s trade regime, presenting it as among the most restrictive faced by US exporters.
“India has maintained some of the highest tariffs on the United States of any major world economy, with tariffs as high as an average of 37 per cent for agricultural goods and more than 100 per cent on certain autos. India also has a history of imposing highly protectionist non-tariff barriers that have banned and prohibited many US exports to India,” the fact sheet said.
The White House framed the interim agreement as a mechanism to dismantle both tariff and non-tariff obstacles, while also pushing India toward regulatory reforms that would ease access for US companies.
Digital services tax to be removed; digital trade rules on the table
The fact sheet also signals movement in a politically sensitive area: digital taxation and cross-border data and services.
India will remove its digital services taxes and committed to negotiate a robust set of bilateral digital trade rules that address discriminatory or burdensome practices and other barriers to digital trade, including rules that prohibit the imposition of customs duties on electronic transmissions.
This is likely to be closely watched by US technology firms and by India’s domestic digital economy, where policy debates have increasingly focused on sovereignty, data localisation and taxation of multinational platforms.
Remaining negotiations: services, investment, labour and procurement
The White House made clear that the interim agreement does not resolve the most complex parts of the relationship. It said the two sides would continue negotiations across a wide range of contentious issues.
In line with the roadmap set out in the terms of reference for the BTA, the United States and India will “continue negotiations to address the remaining tariff barriers, additional non-tariff barriers, technical barriers to trade, customs and trade facilitation, good regulatory practices, trade remedies, services and investment, intellectual property, labour, environment, government procurement, and trade-distorting or unfair practices of state-owned enterprises.”
The breadth of the list underscores how far the negotiations still have to travel before a full Bilateral Trade Agreement is concluded.
Reciprocal tariff lowered after India stops buying Russian oil, White House says
The fact sheet also ties the trade deal to geopolitics, particularly India’s energy purchases.
It noted that the US president agreed to remove the additional 25% tariff on imports from India in “recognition of India’s commitment to stop purchasing” Russian oil. Accordingly, the President signed an Executive Order last Friday removing that additional 25% tariff.
“Given India’s willingness to align with the United States to confront systemic imbalances in the bilateral trade relationship and shared national security challenges, the United States will lower the Reciprocal Tariff on India from 25% to 18%.
The linkage suggests the administration is using trade concessions as leverage for strategic alignment, particularly as Washington seeks to tighten enforcement against Russian oil revenues.
Economic security and supply chains
Beyond market access, the White House fact sheet places the interim agreement within a broader national security framework. It said the two countries would strengthen “economic security alignment” to improve supply chain resilience, investment screening and export controls.
The United States and India committed to strengthening economic security alignment to enhance supply chain resilience and innovation through complementary actions to address non-market policies of third parties as well as cooperating on inbound and outbound investment reviews and export controls, it said adding that the two countries will significantly increase bilateral trade in technology products and expand joint technology cooperation.
This language mirrors a growing trend in US trade policy: treating technology supply chains and industrial policy as strategic infrastructure, not merely commercial activity.
A trade pact shaped by politics, pressure and strategic recalibration
The White House said the agreement reflects a push for “balanced, reciprocal trade” with a key partner. It also described the interim framework as evidence of an administration agenda to lower barriers for American exporters while tying trade to security outcomes.
On the ‘Prosperous Path Forward’, the fact sheet said that US President Donald Trump continues to advance the interests of the American people, enhancing market access for American exporters and lowering tariff and non-tariff barriers to protect our economic and national security.