India-USA Relations and Trade

Trade between India and the United States has grown nearly 30-fold since the early 1990s. On 6 August 2026, a Parliamentary Committee report looked closely at where that relationship stands, and what could still go wrong.

A 30-Fold Rise in Trade

IntlRel0074

Early 1990s

$7.3 Billion Baseline

As liberalisation begins

2019

GSP Status Revoked

~$5.6 billion in exports hit

2024

$210.1 Billion

US is now India’s #1 partner

6 Aug 2026

200th Committee Report

Mission 500 recommended

Mission 500: the Committee’s roadmap to take India-US bilateral trade to $500 billion by 2030.

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Timeline

• Early 1990s: Total India-US bilateral trade stands at just $7.3 billion, as India begins economic liberalisation.
• 2019: The US withdraws India’s Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) benefits, affecting around $5.6 billion in Indian exports.
• 2024: Bilateral trade in goods and services reaches $210.1 billion. The US becomes India’s single largest trading partner.
• 6 August 2026: A Parliamentary Committee tables its 200th Report, evaluating India-US trade relations and recommending a path forward.

Must Know

• The United States is India’s largest trading partner. Bilateral trade in goods and services reached about $210.1 billion in 2024.
• This trade has grown steeply since the 1990s. It stood at just $7.3 billion in the early years of India’s economic liberalisation.
• Both countries launched talks toward a full Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA) in February 2025, aiming to expand market access and cut tariff and non-tariff barriers.
• The 200th Report of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Commerce, “Evaluation of India-US Trade Relations,” was tabled on 6 August 2026. Rajya Sabha MP Dola Sen chairs the Committee.
• The report sets out “Mission 500”, a roadmap to take bilateral trade to $500 billion by 2030.

Good to Know

• India and the US have also worked through trade friction outside tariffs. Both countries resolved their last outstanding WTO dispute in 2025, after earlier settling several others.
• The Committee held four meetings, spanning more than seven hours, before finalising its report. It consulted government departments, export bodies, and industry from textiles, agriculture, automobiles, marine products, steel, chemicals, and gems and jewellery.
• The report recommends exempting key exports, including generic medicines, smartphones, and critical minerals, from future US tariff hikes.
• It also calls for fast-tracked export corridors and automated customs clearance zones, for high-volume shipments to the US. These would be developed jointly with the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways.
• Other recommendations include a real-time monitoring system for US customs audits. A proposed National Fund would also help Indian exporters redesign products and diversify into new markets.

Test Yourself

Please wait…

1. The Parliamentary Committee’s ‘Mission 500’ recommendation targets India-US bilateral trade of how much, by 2030?

$500 billion

$210 billion

$1 trillion

$100 billion

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Great to Know

• India runs Free Trade Agreement negotiations and reviews with several major partners, not just the US. See IntlRel0056 — India’s Free Trade Agreements for the wider picture.
• A trading relationship this large rarely grows in a straight line. Bilateral trade climbed from $7.3 billion to over $210 billion. Even so, it still passed through real setbacks along the way, like the 2019 GSP withdrawal.

Current Affairs

• 6 August 2026: The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Commerce tabled its 200th Report, “Evaluation of India-US Trade Relations,” chaired by Dola Sen. (Source: The Tribune)
• 6 August 2026: The Committee recommended the early conclusion of the proposed India-US Bilateral Trade Agreement. It stressed that India’s strategic and commercial interests must stay fully protected. (Source: The Tribune)
• 6 August 2026: The report set a time-bound roadmap for Mission 500, targeting $500 billion in bilateral trade by 2030. It also recommended tariff exemptions for generic medicines, smartphones, and critical minerals. (Source: DD India)
• 25 July 2026: India confirmed the outcome of the US’s final Section 301 measures on forced labour, announced by USTR on 23 July 2026.
  • The US imposed an additional 10% ad valorem duty on Indian imports, down from the 12.5% originally proposed on 2 June 2026.
  • India was placed in a lower tariff tier than most of the 60 economies covered, following sustained written submissions, consultations, and public-hearing participation.
  • Around 45% of India’s US exports, including generic pharmaceuticals and smartphones, stay outside the 10% duty’s scope. Products already under Section 232 measures, like steel and aluminium, are also excluded.
  • A promised textile-specific mechanism is not yet operational. India continues to raise it within the ongoing India-US Bilateral Trade Agreement talks.
  (Source: PIB)
• From 22 to 24 June 2026, US Trade Representative Ambassador Jamieson Greer visited New Delhi, leading an official US delegation. The visit aimed to advance India’s Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA) talks with the US. (Source: PIB)
• Greer held several rounds of talks with Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal. They reviewed core BTA elements: market access, digital trade, supply chain resilience, and non-tariff barriers. (Source: PIB)
• Both sides aimed to finalise an interim deal, in line with a joint statement from 7 February 2026. This was seen as a stepping stone toward the full BTA. (Source: PIB)