Trade Deal Allows India To Maintain Agricultural Import Protections: US Trade Envoy

Last Updated:February 04, 2026, 07:43 IST

US Trade Representative says negotiations on access to India’s farm market will continue despite tariff reductions.

Piyush Goyal said PM Modi ensured agriculture and dairy interests were safeguarded in US trade talks. (IMAGE: REUTERS/REPRESENTATIVE)

US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer on Tuesday said the trade deal between the United States and India will allow New Delhi to maintain some agricultural import protections.

Greer told CNBC that Washington “will continue to work on access to certain protected areas of India’s agriculture sector," indicating that negotiations on farm products were not yet fully settled.

He said the agreement would reduce India’s tariffs on American industrial goods to zero from the current 13.5 per cent and eliminate duties on several categories.

India’s tariffs “for a variety of things, you know, tree nuts, wine, spirits, fruits, vegetables, etc, they’re going down to zero," Greer said in the interview.

However, a Reuters report noted that Greer did not mention rice, beef, soybeans, sugar or dairy — commodities that India had also excluded from its recent trade agreement with the European Union.

Greer did not specify a start date for the tariff changes, saying the process to formalise the agreement was still underway. “We’ll finish papering it, but we know the specifics, we know the details," he said, adding that India would continue to retain protections around certain agricultural goods.

He also confirmed that the deal would lower US tariffs on most Indian goods to 18 per cent from 50 per cent, citing the size and growth of India’s trade surplus with the United States. The surplus reached $53.5 billion during the first 11 months of 2025, up from $45.8 billion for all of 2024, according to US Census Bureau data.

Meanwhile, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said Prime Minister Narendra Modi had ensured that the interests of India’s agriculture and dairy sectors were protected in the bilateral trade deal.

Addressing a press conference, Goyal said the agreement would open up significant opportunities for micro, small and medium enterprises as well as sectors such as engineering, textiles, gems and jewellery, leather goods and marine products.

“PM Modi has always championed both the agriculture and dairy sectors, safeguarding their interests and working tirelessly to ensure a bright future and ample opportunities for the people in these sectors," Goyal said. “The sensitive factors of India’s economy, particularly agriculture and dairy, have been protected."

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