Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal will travel to the United States on September 22 for trade talks, the Ministry of Commerce and Industry announced on Saturday. The visit follows a meeting in New Delhi earlier this week, where a US delegation led by Assistant US Trade Representative (USTR) for South and Central Asia, Brendan Lynch, held discussions with Indian officials. “A team from the United States Trade Representative, led by Assistant USTR Brendan Lynch, had meetings at the Ministry of Commerce on September 16 to take forward the ongoing negotiations for a trade deal with the US. The discussions were positive and forward-looking, covering various aspects of the trade deal. It was decided to intensify efforts to achieve early conclusion of a mutually beneficial agreement,” MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said on Friday. The negotiations mark the resumption of talks that were stalled after US President Donald Trump last month doubled tariffs to 50 per cent over India’s continued purchase of Russian oil. On the same day as the Delhi talks, Trump telephoned Prime Minister Narendra Modi to extend birthday greetings, with Modi affirming India’s commitment to take the partnership “to new heights.”
