Trump is ‘weaponizing tariffs'
The US has hit India with a 25% tariff and additional penalties over trade with Russia. Commenting on the move, Das suggested that Trump is 'weaponizing' trade.
'It is very hard to read Donald Trump as he changes his mind every day,' Das said. 'Even now we do not know if it's a deal-making ploy. It could just be a negotiating tool for him,' he added.
Das, however, also suggested that the US remains 'a very significant market,' and that it would be in India's own interest to lower tariffs to be more competitive when it comes to exporting goods and services.
'We are a protectionist country and for our own sake we need to bring down tariffs. It is in our own interests to lower tariffs to not only the US but to other countries as well,' he said.
Das added that despite the Indian economy growing 6.5% annually on average for two decades, the country has made slow strides in manufacturing. 'Although India today is the fastest growing large economy in the world, we have not yet created an industrial revolution,' he said.
He noted that 45% of India's workers are still employed in the agriculture sector. Manufactured goods currently account for a mere 2% of India's exports.
On Thursday, New Delhi reiterated that it will take all necessary steps to safeguard India's interests while evaluating the implications of Trump's trade moves. Speaking in Parliament, Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal noted India's economic rise: 'We have gone from being listed as a 'fragile' economy to being on track to becoming the third-largest economy in the world. We have risen from the 11th-largest economy to one of the top five economies.'
Trump recently suggested that India and Russia "can take their dead economies down together," doubling down on his claim that US does "littel business" with both countries.
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