India is aiming to finalise a bilateral trade agreement with the United States by November, the country’s trade minister has said, adding that the deadline for negotiations is not as important as the necessity to reach a “mutually beneficial” deal.
“We never negotiate trade deals with a deadline – we only negotiate good trade deals which are mutually beneficial,” Goyal said at an industry event on Tuesday.
“We are always open for an equitable and mutually beneficial trade deal,” he said, adding that the Narendra Modi government was still working with the US for a a bilateral trade agreement.
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At a separate event he said the administration hope to conclude the trade agreement by November.
Goyal’s remarks come as US President Donald Trump’s 50% tariff on key Indian exports came in effect last week from August 27. Trump has said he does not intend to reduce his India tariffs, half of which are a punitive measure over the country’s Russian oil purchase.
On Monday, Trump said India has offered to reduce its tariffs on US goods to zero. While calling the US relationship with India “one sided,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform: “They have now offered to cut their Tariffs to nothing, but it’s getting late. They should have done so years ago.”
Indian officials have not responded to Trump’s claim, but Modi, the country’s prime minister, has also made moves this week to renew trade and diplomatic ties with once-bitter rival China.
Modi was in China for a summit of more than 20 leaders of non-Western countries of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, a China-backed initiative given renewed impetus by Trump’s global tariff offensive.
At the summit, Chinese President Xi Jinping pressed his vision for a new global security and economic order that prioritizes the “Global South,” in a direct challenge to the US. Modi was seen holding hands and laughing along with Xi and also with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Courting global deals
On Tuesday, meanwhile, Goyal signalled India was also pursuing trade deals across the globe. Goyal has previously said India “will neither bow down nor ever appear weak”. Instead, it will focus on capturing new markets, he said last week.
Trade negotiations with the European Union are progressing and relations with China are “returning to normal” as border tensions ease, Goyal said in one address.
India has already finalised trade agreements with Mauritius, Australia, EFTA, the UK, and the UAE, he said at another event.
#WATCH | Delhi | Union Commerce & Industry Minister Piyush Goyal says, “…India is in dialogue with the U.S. for a bilateral trade agreement…” pic.twitter.com/BrvZuudZae
— ANI (@ANI) September 2, 2025
On Wednesday, India’s Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar met his German counterpart, Johann Wadephul, who is on a two-day visit to India, in New Delhi. Both ministers called for an increase in bilateral trade, including in the areas of defence and security.
Jaishankar also said India was counting on Germany’s support to deepen its ties with the European Union and expedite trade talks.
Trade negotiations between India and the EU – which resumed in 2021 after being stalled for eight years – have faced hurdles over the EU’s push to cut import taxes on cars and dairy, while seeking stricter climate and labour rules on Indian goods.
India wants to protect local farmers, avoid rigid green rules and keep control over legal disputes. The country’s agricultural protections have also been a factor delaying the US trade deal.
India has also sharply criticised both the US and the EU, saying it is being unfairly singled out by them over its Russian oil purchases when they both trade extensively with Moscow despite the war in Ukraine.
Speaking to reporters after Wednesday’s meeting, Jaishankar said India would like the European free-trade agreement to reach a “decisive conclusion” in the coming days. Meanwhile, the German minister said the deal could be concluded in coming months.
“If others put up trade barriers, then we should respond by lowering them,” Wadephul said.
- Reuters, with additional editing and inputs by Vishakha Saxena
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