India pushes ahead with US trade talks despite tariff hike to 50%
Last week, President Donald Trump imposed an additional 25 per cent tariff on Indian goods due to Delhi's continued purchase of Russian oil, bringing the total duty on Indian exports to the U.S. to 50 per cent - among the highest of any American trading partner.
"Our relations with the U.S. are multi-dimensional, and should not be seen only through the prism of trade," one of the lawmakers said, citing the foreign secretary's briefing to the panel.
Shashi Tharoor, an opposition Congress party leader, who heads the panel, said trade talks would continue.
"As of now, there is no change in the existing plans for the sixth round," he said, referring to a scheduled visit of a U.S. trade delegation to New Delhi from August 25.
Earlier, junior finance minister, Pankaj Chaudhary told lawmakers that about 55 per cent of India's merchandise exports to the United States would covered by the new tariff.
His estimate factored in the initial 25 per cent levy, he said in a written response to a lawmaker's query.
"The Department of Commerce is engaged with all stakeholders" for their assessment of the situation, Chaudhary added.
Goods trade between the United States and India - the world's biggest and fifth-largest economies, respectively - was worth about $87 billion in the last fiscal year, according to Indian government estimates.
The panel separately voiced concerns over Pakistani army chief Field Marshal Asim Munir's reported remarks on nuclear threats in South Asia during a visit to the U.S.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
CNA
7 minutes ago
- CNA
US judge denies government request to release Maxwell transcripts
NEW YORK: A US federal judge on Monday (Aug 11) rejected the Trump administration's request to unseal grand jury transcripts from the criminal case against Ghislaine Maxwell, the convicted accomplice of sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. District Judge Paul Engelmayer said there was little in the transcripts that was not already public, and they did not identify anyone other than Maxwell and Epstein as having had sexual contact with underage girls. The Justice Department had sought to release the records to ease anger among some of President Donald Trump's supporters, who have long claimed there was a cover-up of Epstein's crimes and alleged high-level connections. 'NO THERE THERE' Engelmayer dismissed the government's argument that there was 'abundant public interest' in the case. 'Its entire premise — that the Maxwell grand jury materials would bring to light meaningful new information about Epstein's and Maxwell's crimes, or the Government's investigation into them — is demonstrably false,' he wrote. 'Insofar as the motion to unseal implies that the grand jury materials are an untapped mine lode of undisclosed information about Epstein or Maxwell or confederates, they definitively are not that,' he said, adding: 'There is no 'there' there.' The judge also questioned the administration's motives, calling them potentially 'disingenuous' and suggesting the request could be a diversion rather than a genuine act of transparency. MAXWELL OPPOSED RELEASE Maxwell, 63, is serving a 20-year sentence after being convicted in 2021 of recruiting underage girls for Epstein, who died in a New York jail in 2019 while awaiting trial for sex trafficking. Her lawyers opposed the release of the transcripts, arguing it could affect her ongoing legal appeals. The Justice Department is also seeking to unseal grand jury records from Epstein's own case, a request before another judge. POLITICAL CONTEXT Trump's supporters have been vocal about the Epstein case for years. They reacted angrily last month when the FBI and Justice Department said the financier had died by suicide, had not blackmailed prominent figures and did not keep a 'client list.' In a bid to calm the furor, the department sought to release transcripts from the Maxwell and Epstein cases. US Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, formerly Trump's personal lawyer, recently met Maxwell but has not disclosed the details of their conversation. She has since been moved to a minimum-security prison. Trump, 79, was once a friend of Epstein, and the Wall Street Journal reported last month that his name appeared among hundreds during a Justice Department review of the so-called 'Epstein files.' No evidence of wrongdoing has been presented.
Straits Times
2 hours ago
- Straits Times
Trump open to Nvidia selling scaled-back Blackwell chip to China
Nvidia may be allowed to ship its Blackwell chips to China if the company can design it to be less advanced. WASHINGTON – US President Donald Trump signalled on Aug 11 that he'd be open to allowing Nvidia Corp to sell a scaled-back version of its most advanced AI chip to China. Mr Trump said he would consider a deal that would allow Nvidia to ship its Blackwell chips to China if the company could design it to be less advanced. 'It's possible I'd make a deal' on a 'somewhat enhanced – in a negative way – Blackwell' processor, he said in a briefing with reporters. 'In other words, take 30 per cent to 50 per cent off of it.' Mr Trump made his remarks on Nvidia's Blackwell chip while confirming that he'd hammered out a separate, unusual deal with Nvidia that will allow the company to sell its less-advanced H20 AI chip to China if it pays 15 per cent of revenue tied to those shipments to the US government. AMD Micro Devices will deliver the same share from MI308 revenues, a person familiar with the situation has said, asking not to be identified discussing internal deliberations. The revenue-sharing agreement for the H20 chip – and the prospect of yet another one for Nvidia's Blackwell product – reflects Mr Trump's consistent effort to engineer a financial payout for America in return for concessions on trade. Such unprecedented arrangements, however, stand to set a precedent for all American companies doing business in the Asian nation and threaten the US government's national security rationale for export controls, experts said. Mr Trump didn't say exactly when he might negotiate a deal with Nvidia Chief Executive Officer Jensen Huang on the Blackwell chip but alluded to a possible meeting soon on the prospect: 'I think he's coming to see me again about that, but that will be a unenhanced version of the big one.' Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. World Trump seizes control of Washington police, deploys National Guard Business Lower-wage retail workers to receive up to 6% pay bump from Sept 1 Singapore Keppel to sell M1's telco business to Simba for $1.43b, says deal expected to benefit consumers Singapore ST Explains: Who owns Simba, the company that is buying M1? Singapore Telco price undercutting expected to subside after sale of M1 to Simba: Analysts Singapore ST Explains: What is Vers and which HDB estates could it be rolled out in? Singapore For Vers to work, compensation should account for varied needs of HDB flat owners: Observers Singapore At least $2m lost in S'pore to govt official impersonation scams involving cryptocurrency in Q1 Nvidia's Blackwell design is at the heart of the most powerful computers that create and run AI software. Those chips are currently too powerful to be sold into China, according to US restrictions. Nvidia and smaller rival AMD have seen their revenues in China slashed by increasingly tight US government restrictions on AI chip exports. While the Trump administration has begun granting permits for some chips to China, those products are older and only equivalent to domestic Chinese offerings, casting doubt on their attractiveness in that market. A newer, better offering might help promote Nvidia's standing with Chinese customers if it can get sign-off from the administration. When the US tightened restrictions in April, Nvidia said it would work on another chip for the China market and would seek permission to export that one. It cautioned that the older Hopper design, the basis of the H20 chip being sent to China only, could no longer be reduced in capabilities. BLOOMBERG
CNA
2 hours ago
- CNA
India's Modi calls Zelensky, presses for end to Ukraine war
In this photo provided by the Ukrainian Presidential Press Office, shows Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, right, greeting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Kyiv, Ukraine, Friday, Aug. 23, 2024. (Photo: AP/Ukrainian Presidential Press Office) 12 Aug 2025 01:18AM (Updated: 12 Aug 2025 01:23AM) NEW DELHI: Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday (Aug 11) reiterated his commitment to an 'early and peaceful' end to the Ukraine war after a telephone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. The conversation came ahead of a planned summit between Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump in Alaska on Friday, aimed at trying to resolve the three-year conflict. It followed Modi's call with Putin last week, during which he also urged a peaceful resolution. INDIA'S BALANCING ACT New Delhi has maintained longstanding ties with Moscow even as it has sought closer security cooperation with Washington and other Western allies. India has avoided directly condemning Russia's invasion and instead positioned itself as a potential intermediary. 'I conveyed India's consistent position on the need for an early and peaceful resolution of the conflict,' Modi said after speaking to Zelensky. 'India remains committed to making every possible contribution in this regard, as well as to further strengthening bilateral ties with Ukraine,' he added in a social media post. Rescuers and police officers work at the site of the Russian air strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine August 10, 2025. (Photo: Reuters/Stringer) Tens of thousands of people have been killed since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, with millions displaced. Three rounds of negotiations between Moscow and Kyiv this year have failed to produce a breakthrough, and it is unclear whether the Alaska summit will bring the sides closer to peace. Putin has ruled out direct talks with Zelensky for now, while the Ukrainian leader has said such a meeting is essential for progress. Ukraine Narendra Modi Russia
