US President Donald Trump has signed an executive order removing a 25-percent tariff on Indian goods that had been imposed over India’s purchases of Russian oil, following a preliminary trade agreement reached earlier this week between the United States and India.
The move follows the release of a joint US-India statement on Friday evening, which outlined further details of the agreement first announced on Monday.
Under the deal, Trump pledged to reduce overall tariffs on Indian imports from 50 percent to 18 percent by eliminating the Russia-related duty and lowering a separate 25 percent “reciprocal” tariff.
Trump had threatened to double new import tariffs on India from 25 percent to 50 percent by August 27 if New Delhi does not halt its purchase of Russian oil.
In the executive order, Trump said the Russia-related tariff would be lifted effective Saturday, citing India’s commitment to halt direct and indirect imports of Russian oil.
The order also referenced India’s pledge to purchase US energy products and its agreement to a framework expanding defense cooperation with the United States over the next decade.
According to the joint statement, India will eliminate tariffs on all US industrial goods and reduce duties on a broad range of agricultural and food products. These include dried distillers’ grains, red sorghum for animal feed, tree nuts, fresh and processed fruit, soybean oil, wine and spirits, and other items.
In return, the United States will lower reciprocal tariffs on a wide list of Indian goods and may remove them entirely for certain products not produced domestically, pending the successful conclusion of ongoing negotiations.
The agreement also includes the removal of tariffs on specific aircraft and aircraft parts that were previously imposed under separate national security measures.
Additionally, the US will establish a preferential tariff-rate quota for auto parts affected by national security tariffs and pursue negotiated outcomes related to generic pharmaceuticals and ingredients under a separate investigation.
As part of the deal, India signaled its intention to purchase $500 billion worth of US energy products, aircraft and aircraft components, technology products, and cooking coal over the next five years.
Both countries said negotiations would continue toward a broader bilateral trade agreement aimed at expanding market access and strengthening supply chain resilience.
US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said the agreement would open significant opportunities for American businesses and workers, describing it as a step toward deeper economic ties between the two countries.
Last week, Trump told India to stop purchasing oil from Iran and instead supply its energy demands by buying crude from Venezuela.
“India is coming in, and they’re going to be buying Venezuelan oil as opposed to buying it from Iran. So, we’ve already made that deal, the concept of the deal,” Trump told reporters on board Air Force One last Saturday.
