‘Will take all steps necessary to secure national interest’: India reacts to Trump’s 25% tariffs

Trump 25% tariff on India: The United States and India have been discussing a trade deal for months, but no final agreement has been reached.

By: Express Web Desk
New Delhi | Updated: July 31, 2025 08:17 AM IST

In a post on Truth Social, Trump said India’s own protectionist policies over the years had meant America had “done relatively little business with them”. (PTI)

India US trade deal talks: Hours after US President Donald Trump announced a 25 per cent tariff “plus a penalty” on Indian goods, the government responded, saying it had taken note of the statement and was studying its implications.

Responding to the post, the Government of India said in a statement: “India and the US have been engaged in negotiations on concluding a fair, balanced and mutually beneficial bilateral trade agreement over the last few months.”

It added: “We remain committed to that objective.”

Reiterating its priorities, the statement said: “The Government attaches the utmost importance to protecting and promoting the welfare of our farmers, entrepreneurs, and MSMEs.”

New Delhi also stressed: “The Government will take all steps necessary to secure our national interest, as has been the case with other trade agreements including the latest Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement with the UK.”

Trump’s announcement

In a Truth Social post, Trump accused India of maintaining “high tariffs” and “obnoxious” non-monetary trade barriers, adding: “We have, over the years, done relatively little business with them.” He also criticised India’s defence ties with Moscow, writing: “They have always bought a vast majority of their military equipment from Russia, and are Russia’s largest buyer of ENERGY, along with China, at a time when everyone wants Russia to STOP THE KILLING IN UKRAINE — ALL THINGS NOT GOOD!”

Trump did not clarify what the “penalty” would involve beyond the new 25 per cent tariff. It also remains unclear whether the newly announced 25 percent tariff on Indian goods will be applied on top of the existing 10 percent baseline duty. The 10 percent tariff, which currently covers most Indian exports except a few exemptions, was first introduced by Trump on April 2 as a blanket rate for nearly all countries.

Among India’s key trade competitors, the US has announced comparatively lower tariffs for Vietnam (20 percent) and Malaysia (25 percent), while higher duties have been set for Bangladesh (35 percent) and Thailand (36 percent).

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Back on April 2, Trump unveiled a wave of high reciprocal tariffs — including a proposed 26 percent rate for India. However, implementation was paused for 90 days, pushing the start date from July 9 to August 1, as Washington entered trade talks with affected nations. The 10 percent baseline tariff, though, has remained in force throughout.

In addition to the general tariffs, the US is also levying a 50 percent duty on steel and aluminium imports and a 25 percent tariff on the automobile sector.

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