US surpasses China as India's biggest trading partner at $87.95 billion

Trade experts believe that the trend will continue in the coming years also as New Delhi and Washington are engaged in further deepening the economic ties

The US has surpassed China to become India’s top trading partner, showing greater economic ties between the two countries. According to the data of the commerce ministry, in 2018-19, the bilateral trade between the US and India stood at $87.95 billion. During the period, India’s two-way commerce with China aggregated at $87.07 billion.

Similarly, during April-December 2019-20, the India China Bilateral Trade between the US and India stood at $68 billion. It stood at $64.96 billion with China in the same period. Trade experts believe that the trend will continue in the coming years also as New Delhi and Washington are engaged in further deepening the economic ties. An expert said that if the countries will finalise a free trade agreement (FTA), then the bilateral trade would reach at different levels.

“FTA with US will be very beneficial for India as the US is the biggest market for domestic goods and services,” Federation of Indian Export organisations Director General Ajay Sahai said. He said that India’s exports as well as imports are increasing with the US, while with China both are declining. America is one of the few countries with which India has a trade surplus. On the other hand, India has a huge trade deficit with China…

American fashion brands push for India-US FTA to streamline trade issues

After repeated overtures from Trump administration, India has told the US that it was unwilling to discuss a full FTA

Major American apparel brands such as Ralph Lauren, Calvin Klein, Van Heusen, and Carters have made a case for a free trade agreement (FTA) between India and the US, arguing it will attract investments and streamline trade-related issues.

“An FTA with the US is a major component of bilateral business relations that is missing now,” Tara Joseph, president of the American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham) in Hong Kong, said. AmCham Hong Kong, in partnership with the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), has brought a delegation of 15 top US apparel companies to India for exploring mega investment opportunities. It has also asked the government to reduce the customs duty on synthetic fabric imports.

The American industry body is the latest to bat for an FTA with the US. Earlier this year, both the US-India Business Council and the US-India Strategic Partnership Forum — major business advocacy groups — reiterated their support for a bilateral trade deal.

This view has found support among Indian industry as well. “We need FTAs with major buying countries like the US. In the current business environment, for a variety of reasons, this may be a good time to sign a bilateral FTA with the US,” said Gautam Nair, chairman of the CII Textiles Task Force on Sourcing and Investments.