New Delhi:
In a joint televised interview with billionaire Elon Musk, US President Donald Trump made it clear that India will not be spared from Washington’s reciprocal tariffs. In a conversation with Fox News’ Sean Hannity, President Trump reiterated his stance on global trade and existing tariff structures between the US and its partners.
“I told Prime Minister (Narendra) Modi yesterday – he was here – I said, ‘Here’s what we’re going to do: reciprocal. Whatever you charge, I’m charging,'” President Trump said, recounting his conversation with the PM. “He (PM Modi) goes, ‘No, no, I don’t like that.’ ‘No, no, whatever you charge, I’m going to charge.’ I’m doing that with every country.”
India has some of the world’s highest tariffs on certain imports from the US, particularly in the automobile sector, where duties on foreign cars can reach up to 100 per cent. Mr Musk, sitting beside President Trump, confirmed this, saying, ” It’s 100 per cent – auto imports are 100 per cent.”
President Trump responded: “Yeah, that’s peanuts. So much higher. And others too.”
He argued that such tariffs make it nearly impossible for American companies to sell in India unless they establish manufacturing plants there, which he considers “unfair” to the US economy.
Under his proposed reciprocal tariff system, the US would impose the same level of tariffs on Indian imports as India levies on American goods. “Nobody can argue with me,” President Trump insisted. “If I said 25 per cent, they’d say, ‘Oh, that’s terrible.’ I don’t say that anymore… because I say, ‘Whatever they charge, we’ll charge.’ And you know what? They stop.”
This is not the first time President Trump has clashed with India over tariffs. During his first term, he often referred to India as the “tariff king”, citing high import duties on US goods. Following Prime Minister Modi’s recent visit to Washington, both countries committed to doubling bilateral trade to $500 billion by 2030 and negotiating a bilateral trade agreement (BTA) by Autumn 2025.
