A trade agreement between India and the United States may soon be finalized, according to U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick. “You should expect a deal between the United States and India in the not too distant future because I think we found a place that really works for both countries,” Lutnick said at the eighth edition of the U.S.-India Strategic Partnership Forum (USISPF) on Sunday.
The statement comes ahead of the final round of direct negotiations between Indian and U.S. representatives, set to take place in New Delhi this week.
India and the U.S. ramped up trade negotiations following U.S. President Donald Trump’s recent announcement of reciprocal tariffs targeting nations with trade imbalances, including India. The tariffs were temporarily suspended for 90 days until July 8, with China being the sole exception.
According to earlier reports, the U.S. delegation is expected to arrive on June 5 or 6. Both nations are working toward finalizing the trade agreement by the last week of June, ahead of the July 8 deadline when the 90-day suspension on U.S. reciprocal tariffs expires. The additional 26% duty, introduced by Trump on April 2 under his reciprocal tariff policy, makes the interim deal essential to prevent these tariffs from being implemented.
On Monday at the U.S.-India Strategic Partnership Forum Annual Leadership Summit, Lutnick highlighted that trade agreements usually take two to three years to finalize, but the U.S. strives to complete the process within a month, an approach that is unusual in international trade negotiations.
Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal stated that India and the U.S. seek to provide preferential market access to each other’s businesses, with teams from both nations actively collaborating on the proposed bilateral trade agreement.
In February, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and U.S. President Donald Trump declared the India-U.S. trade agreement, designed as a multi-sector pact. The first phase is expected to be finalized by September-October 2025, with the goal of increasing bilateral trade from $191 billion to $500 billion by 2030.
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