India, U.S. agreed on preferential market access for Indian goods in America: Goyal

Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal. File | Photo Credit: PTI India and the U.S. have already agreed that Indian goods in the American market will receive preferential market access compared to competitor nations, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said on Sunday (November 15, 2026).India and the U.S. finalised the framework for the first phase of the bilateral trade agreement in February.The deal was to be signed earlier, but changes in the U.S. tariff landscape have led to further negotiations on the agreement.“This was already agreed between the leaders — President [Donald] Trump and Prime Minister Narendra Modi — when they announced that we have both come to a broad framework agreement a few months ago and it has been acknowledged that India will get preferential trade access in the U.S. with lower duties than our competitor countries,” Mr. Goyal told reporters in Cairo.He is in Cairo on a two-day visit to discuss ways to boost trade and investment between India and Egypt.The Minister was replying to a question about the U.S. assurance that Indian goods will get preferential market access.An official has recently stated that the U.S. has assured India of a comparative tariff advantage over competing countries under the proposed bilateral trade agreement (BTA), with both sides working to conclude the first tranche by the end of the current financial year.“We will have to see how the tariff framework unfolds. We are working towards closing the first tranche by the end of this financial year. Talks are going for the first tranche and the broader BTA,” the official said last week.The extent of the advantage to Indian goods, however, will depend on the tariff framework eventually agreed upon.After the U.S. Supreme Court struck down Mr. Trump’s reciprocal tariffs that were the basis of negotiations, the U.S. is using alternative mechanisms to put up a new tariff architecture in place using provisions of the Trade Act. Published - November 15, 2026 10:40 pm IST