US President Donald Trump on Friday said that there will be no change in the India-US trade deal despite the US Supreme Court canceling his earlier tariffs. Responding to press questions, he said that India will continue to pay 18 percent tariff despite the tariff being declared invalid.
In fact, when asked about the impact of the Supreme Court’s decision on the agreement with India, President Trump said, nothing will change, they will have to pay tariffs and we will not have to. He said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi is a great person but there will be no change in the trade deal.
Let us tell you that there was an interim trade agreement (trade deal) between America and India, under which Washington had reduced the tariff from the earlier 50 percent to 18 percent. On the other hand, New Delhi had agreed to impose zero tariff on American goods.
However, the Supreme Court ruled by a 6-3 majority that Trump’s sweeping tariffs on goods coming from nearly all partner countries were a violation of federal law. Describing the Supreme Court’s decision as extremely disappointing, Trump asked what impact this decision will have on the India-US trade deal. This agreement is expected to be signed by the end of March.
Regarding this, Trump said that the court’s decision will not change anything. India will have to pay tariffs, and we will not have to. This is a reversal of the earlier situation. Prime Minister Modi is a great gentleman and a great person. They are much more intelligent than their opponents. So we made an agreement with India. Now this is a fair compromise. We are not giving them tariffs, while they are.
Trump said the US and India announced a framework for an interim agreement on mutually beneficial trade, and reaffirmed their commitment to the Comprehensive Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA) launched by President Trump and Prime Minister Narendra Modi on February 13, 2025.
Under this framework, India has agreed to eliminate or reduce tariffs on all US industrial goods and a wide range of US agricultural and food products, including dry grains (DDG), red sorghum for animal feed, nuts, fresh and processed fruits, soybean oil, wine and spirits, and other products.
On the other hand, the US will impose a reciprocating tariff of 18 percent on goods produced in India, which include textiles and apparel, leather and footwear, plastic and rubber products, organic chemicals, home furnishing, handicraft items and some machinery. However, the US Supreme Court held that the US President does not have the authority to impose tariffs under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act of 1977 (IEEPA).
Heavy import tariffs have been imposed on goods coming from almost all of America’s trading partners. This decision is expected to have a cascading effect on global trade, businesses, consumers, inflation trends and the financial condition of families across the country.