India and the United States will hold another round of trade talks on June 23 and 24 as both sides look to give final shape to the first tranche of the proposed bilateral trade agreement (BTA), Commerce Secretary Rajesh Agrawal said.
A team from the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) will visit India for discussions with Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal and Indian officials.
“Our expectation is discussion will be centred around giving final touches to the first tranche of the deal as well as the larger BTA that has been under discussion,” Agrawal said during the monthly trade data briefing.
The upcoming talks come at a crucial time as New Delhi and Washington are trying to conclude the initial phase of the long-awaited trade agreement while continuing negotiations on the wider bilateral trade pact.
The latest meeting will follow an earlier round of discussions held in New Delhi between June 1 and June 4, when a USTR delegation led by its chief negotiator held talks with Indian officials.
After the previous round, the Commerce Ministry said both countries discussed a range of issues, including trade in goods, non-tariff barriers, customs procedures, trade facilitation, economic security alignment and other areas of mutual interest.
The negotiations are part of broader efforts by India and the US to deepen economic ties and expand bilateral trade.
The proposed India-US Bilateral Trade Agreement aims to address market access issues, remove trade barriers and strengthen economic cooperation between the two countries.
The first tranche of the deal is expected to focus on areas where both sides can reach an early understanding, while the broader agreement will cover a larger set of trade-related issues.
The June 23-24 talks are expected to be important in determining how quickly India and the US can move towards finalising the first phase of the agreement.