Is India-US trade deal back on track? Ambassador Sergio Gor provides big update

The United States and India continue to actively engage on a proposed bilateral trade deal, newly appointed US Ambassador to India Sergio Gor said on Monday amid heightened concerns over US tariffs on Indian exports.

Addressing a gathering at the US Embassy after assuming charge, Gor said the next round of talks on the trade agreement would take place on Tuesday.

“Both sides continue to actively engage. In fact, the next call on trade will occur tomorrow,” he said, while acknowledging the complexity of the negotiations.

“India is the world’s largest nation, so it’s not an easy task to get this across the finish line, but we are together,” Gor said.

He said the two countries would continue to work closely across critical areas including security, counter-terrorism, energy, technology, education and health.

India to join US-led Pax Silica

Gor also announced that India would be invited next month as a full member of a new US-led strategic initiative, Pax Silica, to build a secure and innovation-driven silicon supply chain.

Countries that joined the initiative last month include Japan, South Korea, the United Kingdom and Israel, he said.

“Today, I'm pleased to announce that India will be invited to join this group of nations as a full member next month,” he said.

Pax Silica is US Department of State’s flagship effort on AI and supply chain security.

“As the world adopts new technology, it is essential that India and the United States work hand in hand from the very start of this initiative,” Gor added, calling the relationship potentially “the most consequential global partnership of this century.”

Markets rebound

The ambassador’s remarks appeared to soothe market nerves.

The benchmark BSE Sensex rebounded nearly 800 points from the day’s low shortly after his statement, after both Sensex and NSE Nifty had fallen close to 1% in late morning trade amid persistent foreign fund outflows, concerns over potential US tariffs on Indian exports and geopolitical developments.

The 30-share Sensex had slipped 715.17 points, or 0.85%, to 82,861.07, while the 50-share Nifty fell 209.9 points, or 0.81%, to 25,473.40.

Following Gor’s comments, Sensex jumped to above 83,650 and Nifty climbed to around 25,693.

Gor’s comments come days after US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick claimed that a potential trade deal with India did not materialise earlier due to a lack of direct engagement at the leadership level.

In an interview with the All-In Podcast released on Friday, Lutnick said negotiations stalled because Prime Minister Narendra Modi did not call US President Donald Trump at a critical moment.

He characterised Trump’s negotiating style as a “staircase,” where early movers secure better terms.

Lutnick claimed that after finalising a deal with the United Kingdom, Washington had given India a limited window to conclude an agreement, but New Delhi was “uncomfortable” initiating a call between the leaders.

He said subsequent US trade deals with Indonesia, the Philippines and Vietnam pushed India “further in the back of the line.”

India rejected the claims, saying the characterisation of the negotiations was “not accurate.”

Responding to a media query, External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said India and the United States have been engaged in talks on a bilateral trade agreement since February 13 last year and have held multiple rounds of negotiations.

“On several occasions, we have been close to a deal,” Jaiswal said, adding that India remains committed to concluding a “mutually beneficial trade agreement between two complementary economies.”

He also said Prime Minister Modi and President Trump spoke by phone eight times in 2025 on a wide range of issues concerning the India-US partnership.