NEW DELHI: India doesn’t need to give any sign that it’s protectionist, the highest bureaucrat within the finance ministry stated, after slashing import duties on high-end bikes, amid US President Donald Trump’s strikes on tariffs.
Sunday’s remarks got here a day after Trump ignited a trade war with sweeping tariffs on Canada, Mexico and China. None had been geared toward India, though Trump had known as it a tariff abuser throughout his election marketing campaign final 12 months.
“We do not need to give anyone any sign that we wish to be protectionist,” Finance Secretary Tuhin Kanta Pandey advised Reuters. “Our stance is that we do not need to improve safety.”
Commerce and immigration points will take centre-stage when Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi meets Trump this month.
India has been making an attempt to placate the Trump administration after it accused the South Asian nation of sustaining very excessive tariffs that damage prospects for American companies.
Trump’s administration has upped the ante by not too long ago elevating the difficulty of undocumented Indians dwelling in the USA, a subject on which India’s overseas ministry has stated it’s in dialogue with US authorities.
India slashed customized duties on bikes with engine capability of 1,600 cc or extra to 30 per cent from 50 per cent on fully-built imports in Saturday’s price range, which Pandey stated additionally minimize its common stage of tariffs to 11 per cent from 13 per cent.
“We must always give the proper sign for the world, in addition to to our personal business,” Pandey added, saying the tariff measures geared toward serving to home firms initially however can be phased out as these industries developed.