U.S. deal excludes sensitive sectors: Goyal

U.S. deal excludes sensitive sectors: Goyal

Minister claims Opposition’s ‘actions’ prevented statement by Centre on the issue in Parliament

He says more details will be made public after the trade deal is formally inked by both parties

Goyal stated that the pact is superior to those of neighbouring countries and competitors

The trade deal with the United States, announced by U.S. President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Narendra Modi on social media late on Monday night, will exclude sensitive agricultural items and dairy, Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal said on Tuesday, adding that the details would be made public “soon”.

Under the deal, the U.S. has agreed to lower its 25% “reciprocal” tariffs on India to 18% and entirely remove the additional “penalty” tariffs of 25% it had imposed on India for its import of Russian oil.

“The trade deal finalised by India with the U.S. is the best among India’s neighbours and its competitors,” Mr. Goyal told presspersons. “PM Modi has always protected the agriculture and dairy sectors and has never compromised on their interests. In the U.S. trade deal as well, India’s sensitive sectors of agriculture and dairy have been excluded,” he said.

Beyond this, he did not specify any other details of what India had conceded to the U.S. Nor did he address Mr. Trump’s claims that India would stop buying Russian oil, increase oil purchases from Venezuela, and increase overall purchases from the U.S.

Opposition blamed

He attacked the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, the Congress, and its allies, saying it was because of their actions in Parliament on Monday that he was conveying the information on the trade deal at a press conference and not on the floor of the House. “Ordinarily, we would have wanted to speak in Parliament about this,” he said.

“But, as you all saw, the way the Opposition, especially the Rahul Gandhi-led Congress and their allies, the DMK, the Trinamool Congress, and the SP [the Samajwadi Party], behaved in Parliament, reaching the Speaker’s dais and insulting him, we have had to speak before you outside the House.”

He said that the deal was in the “final stages of detailing” between the negotiating teams of the two countries. “As soon as the final understanding of the deal is inked, the joint statement is finalised, and technical processes are completed, full details will be shared,” he said.

In a rare public admission, Mr. Goyal acknowledged the impact of the U.S. tariffs on several sectors.

“Our farmers and exporters were all affected by the 50% tariffs,” he said.

“Our marine exporters were facing difficulties. The textile sector had also been facing the need for reduced tariffs. This is a deal that will protect the interests of every Indian and provide huge opportunities for all the people of India, and will protect the sensitive sectors, including agriculture and dairy.” Mr. Goyal said, “It will open up huge opportunities for our labour-intensive export sectors such as textiles, apparel, plastics, home decor, leather and footwear, gems and jewellery, organic chemicals, rubber goods, machinery, and aircraft components.”

Trump’s assertions

Mr. Goyal also sought to address questions from the Opposition as to why the deal was first announced by Mr. Trump.

“The reciprocal tariff was set by the U.S., and they were the ones who had to reduce tariffs, so when they did reduce it to 18%, that news would obviously come from the U.S,” he explained.

In his post on Truth Social, Mr. Trump also made several assertions about what Mr. Modi had allegedly agreed to on India’s behalf. One of these was that India would buy “over $500 billion dollars [sic] worth of U.S. energy, technology, agricultural, coal, and many other products”.

According to sources in the Indian government, the $500 billion worth of purchases is to be spread over five years from when the deal comes into effect, and is a sign of “India’s intent to import” equipment for data centres, increase civil nuclear cooperation, and increase the imports of advanced AI chips.