India and the US have reached a “plateau” in negotiations over a trade deal, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said at the Munich Security Conference, indicating that further concessions from either side would be difficult.
Sitharaman described the agreement under discussion as a “hard and rigorously negotiated” one.
She said she would “like to believe” that negotiations had reached a plateau, beyond which giving or taking more would be “very very difficult” for both India and the US.
She also said Washington was looking at measures beyond the ongoing trade negotiations to reduce its trade imbalance with India.
India-US trade negotiations continue
India and the US have been negotiating a broader Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA) since February 2025, when Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US President Donald Trump agreed to begin talks during Modi’s visit to Washington.
The two countries set a target of more than doubling bilateral trade to $500 billion by 2030.
Negotiations have continued for more than a year, with an interim agreement being pursued as a first step towards the wider BTA.
In February 2026, the two countries announced a framework for an interim trade agreement but indicated that further negotiations would be required to complete the broader pact.
Tariffs, market access remain key issues
Talks have continued through 2026 without a final agreement. US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said on Oct 1 that a trade deal was not imminent, although negotiations were continuing.
Tariffs, market access and the broader trade imbalance remain key areas of discussion between New Delhi and Washington.
Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal was in the US from Sept 29 to Oct 5 for discussions on an interim trade agreement.
Sitharaman’s latest comments indicate that negotiations have reached a difficult stage, with limited room for further concessions from either country. Meanwhile, the US continues to explore measures beyond the formal negotiations to address its trade imbalance with India.
