India, US discuss customs and trade facilitation as both sides push for early bilateral deal

A team of US officials visited India earlier this month for talks on the proposed bilateral trade agreement (BTA) as New Delhi and Washington remain engaged for an early conclusion of the first tranche of the deal, an official said on Tuesday.

The two sides discussed issues pertaining to customs and trade facilitation last week in New Delhi, the official said requesting anonymity.

Indian officials are positive about the proposed mutually beneficial deal, and ruled out any interruption in talks because of the outcome of recent midterm elections in the US.

The US and India have a very consequential relationship, which apart from trade, draws strengths from economic, political and security imperatives, they said, asking not to be named.

According to trade experts, uncertainties created by Washington’s frequent trade measures and the use of tariffs as a negotiating tool had been major hurdles to signing an interim BTA, even though a preliminary draft is almost ready.

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US-India joint statement in Feb

The two countries issued a joint statement on February 7 outlining a framework for an interim BTA. However, the agreement was not signed after the US Supreme Court invalidated the legal basis for the preferential tariff mechanism Washington had offered, the experts said.

India is now awaiting a preferential tariff framework that provides competitive access for its exporters vis-a-vis competing countries, they said. The US government is also keen to finalise the deal at the earliest, they added.

In September, US Ambassador Sergio Gor said India and the United States were working to build a “fair, reciprocal and mutually beneficial” trade relationship. “The US-India relationship stands at a historic high point. Pick any sector and the United States and India are working together on it,” Gor said at the 66th annual session of the Automotive Component Manufacturers Association (ACMA) in New Delhi. HT reported it on September 3.

Gor said cooperation between the two countries extended from information technology and data centres to pharmaceuticals, defence sales and military exercises. He also pointed to potential cooperation in space, citing NASA’s invitation to ISRO to participate in its Moon Base programme.

India and the US have been negotiating a bilateral trade agreement since Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US President Donald Trump met in Washington on February 13, 2025. In February this year, the two countries announced that they had finalised a framework for an interim BTA. The subsequent changes to the US tariff regime, however, have affected the negotiations.