New Delhi: US President Donald Trump has once again launched a scathing attack on India’s trade policies, claiming India imposes “massive” tariffs that effectively block US goods from entering the Indian market. Trump’s comments, made during a White House press briefing, come as part of his ongoing campaign to renegotiate trade deals and address what he perceives as unfair trade practices by various countries.
“India charges us massive tariffs. Massive. You can’t even sell anything in India… They have agreed, by the way, they want to cut their tariffs way down now because somebody is finally exposing them for what they have done,” Trump told reporters at the White House.
Trump explicitly stated that US businesses face insurmountable challenges in selling products in India due to the high tariffs levied by the Indian government. He asserted that India has agreed to significantly reduce these tariffs, although he provided no specifics or timeline for this supposed reduction.
Trump’s criticism of India’s tariffs is not new. He has consistently attacked India’s trade practices throughout his presidency. During his address to a joint session of Congress, he labeled these tariffs as “very unfair,” highlighting that the EU, China, Brazil, Mexico, and Canada, among others, impose significantly higher tariffs on US goods than the US imposes on their products. He specifically cited auto tariffs from India as exceeding 100 per cent, further fueling his argument.
“Other countries have used tariffs against us for decades, and now it’s our turn to start using them against those other countries,” Trump said in his address, the first of his second term.
“On average, the European Union, China, Brazil, India, Mexico and Canada – have you heard of them? – and countless other nations charge us tremendously higher tariffs than we charge them. It’s very unfair,” he told the US lawmakers.
“India charges us auto tariffs higher than 100 per cent,” he added.
This aggressive approach toward trade reflects Trump’s campaign promise of “reciprocal tariffs”, a policy of imposing tariffs equal to those levied against US goods. Trump’s administration has already implemented several tariffs and trade threats against numerous countries, indicating a clear intention to reshape the global trade landscape according to his vision.
