A US delegation is expected to visit India next month for trade negotiations under the proposed bilateral trade agreement (BTA), Commerce Secretary Rajesh Agrawal said on Friday, as reported by PTI.
Visit Timeline
“We expect the US team to visit soon..not this month..may be next month,” Agrawal told reporters. However, he clarified that the dates for the visit have not been finalised yet.
Background of Negotiations
The proposed visit comes after Indian officials travelled to Washington DC in April for in-person discussions with their US counterparts. These discussions aimed to finalise details of the interim trade pact and advance negotiations under the broader India-US Bilateral Trade Agreement framework.
Joint Statement in February
India and the US had issued a joint statement on February 7 outlining the framework for an interim trade agreement focused on reciprocal and mutually beneficial trade. The framework also reaffirmed both countries’ commitment to negotiating the larger bilateral trade agreement.
Ongoing Engagement
Agrawal said India continues to engage with the US on the trade deal and that the agreement would be signed at an “opportune time”. He also noted that India is in discussions with the US regarding Section 301 investigations.
Trade Data
Trade ties between the two countries remain significant, although India’s trade surplus with the US narrowed during the last fiscal year. India’s exports to the US rose marginally by 0.92 per cent to $87.3 billion in 2025-26, while imports increased 15.95 per cent to $52.9 billion. Consequently, India’s trade surplus with the US declined to $34.4 billion from $40.89 billion in the previous fiscal.
