India-US trade deal ‘very near’ but can’t put deadline, says Commerce Secretary

India and the United States are engaged in ongoing discussions on a proposed trade deal, with no fixed deadline set for its announcement, Commerce Secretary Rajesh Agrawal said on Thursday.

“We have always had the discussions. We are again engaged. There has been a virtual meeting also between the minister and the US Trade Representative. There were engagements going on, and negotiating teams were talking virtually on issues which are still pending,” Agrawal told reporters. “But we can’t put a deadline. It’s very near. That will happen as long as both sides are ready and feel it is the right time to announce.”

The remarks come amid heightened concerns over US tariffs on Indian exports and no breakthrough in the negotiations for a proposed bilateral trade deal.

Commenting on exports to the United States amid high tariffs, the commerce secretary said India continues to see resilience in shipments.

“We are still holding on to a positive trend. It was still doing around $7 billion despite high tariffs. We are focusing more on areas where tariffs are less, or in areas where tariffs are there, industry has been showing resilience and holding on to the supply chains,” he said.

Export data

Agrawal expressed confidence that India’s overall exports would cross $850 billion in the current financial year.

Merchandise exports grew 1.86% year-on-year to $38.51 billion in December 2025, compared with $37.8 billion in December 2024, he said. “There has been a positive movement in our export growth. We have maintained the positive territory,” he added.

Cumulative exports during the first nine months of the current financial year stood at $634.26 billion, up from $607.93 billion in the corresponding period last year.

Imports rose to $63.55 billion in December 2025 from $58.43 billion a year ago, resulting in a trade deficit of $25 billion for the month.

During April–December, merchandise exports increased 2.44% to $330.29 billion, official data showed.

Tariffs on Iran trade

On possible tariff issues involving Iran, Agrawal said India’s trade with the country remains limited. “We have very limited trade. We are looking at that. We are awaiting details and as and when details are there, we will look into it,” he said.

In a post on his Truth Social platform, Trump said that “effective immediately,” any country doing business with Iran would face a 25% tariff on “any and all business being done with the United States of America,” calling the order “final and conclusive.”

The White House has not released details on how the tariffs would be implemented or enforced.

Trump did not define what qualifies as “doing business” with Iran, raising questions about whether the measure would apply to goods, services or financial transactions, and which countries could be targeted.