India unlikely to impose counter tariffs on US amid trade deal talks: Report

India is unlikely to impose counter-tariffs on the US and focus on finalising the bilateral trade agreement as quickly as possible after the Donald Trump administration slapped a 26% duty on exports from the country, a government official told Reuters. Trump’s move has shaken Dalal Street, with the Sensex losing 1.6% since Wednesday.

The government is banking on a key clause in the executive order signed by Trump last week that offers respite to nations who take “significant steps to remedy non-reciprocal trade arrangements”, the official said.

Another government official pointed out that India was taking comfort in the fact that it was one of the first nations to have started talks on a trade deal with the US. Its Asian peers, like China (34%), Vietnam (46%), and Indonesia (32%), have been hit by higher tariffs.