India's trade secretary says a US trade deal is very near
The claim follows a string of similar statements from Indian and US officials over the past year, none of which has yet produced a signed agreement.
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India's trade secretary said the country is very close to closing a trade agreement with the United States, offering new detail on preferential market access and tariff stability that negotiators have been working toward.
The statement follows a pattern of similar signals. US Ambassador Sergio Gor said this week that India and the US were nearly finished with the agreement and that most difficult issues had been resolved, according to NewsBytes. Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal said on Thursday that the first phase of the pact has been finalised and is now in legal drafting, to be put into effect once India secures a competitive edge over rival countries, Business Standard reported. Two days earlier, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said talks were heading toward a 'landing point' but added that not everyone had yet worked out a deal, Business Standard reported.
Talks between the two countries have run for about 18 months, centred on tariffs and trade barriers, according to NewsBytes. Earlier milestones have come and gone without a signature. In February, India and the US said a framework for an interim agreement was finalised and that legal text would be signed within a month, a deadline that passed without a deal, All India Radio reported. Before that, in late 2025, officials pointed to a first tranche expected by the end of that year, and in mid-2025 to a deal expected by September or October, neither of which materialised, according to Tribune India and Deccan Herald.
The trade secretary's language adds mechanical detail, on preferential access and tariff stability, that typically precedes a finalised text, rather than the general goodwill statements of recent months. It also comes as India has been making record purchases of US Treasuries, pointing to closer financial ties between the two countries even without a signed tariff agreement. Given how often the gap between 'very near' and a signed deal has closed before without an agreement following, the question for markets is whether this round ends in a dated announcement or becomes another milestone that slips.