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India has imposed higher tariffs on 28 US products, including almonds, apples and walnuts, in response to Washington’s withdrawal of key trade privileges for New Delhi.
The US goods affected by the Indian tariffs include iron and steel products, flat-rolled stainless steel, boric acid, tube and pipe fittings, screws, bolts and rivets. The hikes also target food products such as walnuts, chickpeas, lentils, apples, pears and artemia shrimps.
An order to raise import taxes as high as 120 percent on a number of American-made goods was issued by the Indian government in June 2018.
The new tariffs would allow India to receive around $217 million additional revenue from US imports, a source told the Times of India earlier.
#BREAKING: India imposes retaliatory tariffs on US merchandise exports. Levies imposed on goods originating or exported from the US from June 16. Covers apples, walnuts and phosphoric acid among others. #tradewar #usindiatrade #USIndia @ThePrintIndia pic.twitter.com/QqYjtKXLiM
— Nayanima Basu (@NayanimaBasu) June 15, 2019
An order to raise import taxes as high as 120 percent on a number of American-made goods was issued by the Indian government in June 2018. But it was delayed by New Delhi on several occasions as its trade talks with Washington were ongoing.
The standoff between New Delhi and Washington began last March, when US President Donald Trump imposed 25 per cent import duty on steel and 10 per cent tariffs on aluminum products. Being a major exporter of those items to the American market, India was hit hard by the move, losing around $240 million.
The sides tried to find common ground for over a year, but the trade talks collapsed earlier in June after the US withdrew export incentives to Indian companies under its Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) program, affecting $5.5 billion-worth of goods.
Read more: Challenge for Modi: US or Russia, India can’t have both
The US and India have been major trade partners during the past decade, with turnover between them standing at over $142 billion in 2018.
How Modi’s Government “Offended” the US
(Addition by GVS News Desk)
The US-India defense ties will be put at risk should New Delhi purchase Russian S-400 air defense systems, a senior American diplomat warned, noting that India should think very carefully about making such strategic choices.
“At a certain point, a strategic choice has to be made about partnerships and a strategic choice about what weapons systems and platforms a country is going to adopt,” Alice Wells, US principal deputy assistant secretary for South and Central Asia, said at the hearings on US interests in South Asia and the budget for the fiscal year 2020.
Tensions between the two governments continue to rise as India refuses to back out of its purchase deal with Russia despite US pressure.
RT with additional input by GVS News Desk