US President Donald Trump, in a press conference on Tuesday, said that he has heard India is planning to cut tariffs on American goods substantially. “I think I heard that India just a little while ago is going to be dropping its tariffs very substantially and I said why didn’t somebody do this a long time ago,” he said.
The comments come just before Washington unveils reciprocal tariffs on April 2, which has kept policymakers around the world on edge.
The White House also listed India among nations which are being “unfair” and damaging US exporters with high charges.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said India imposes a 100 per cent tariff on American agricultural goods, making it “virtually impossible” for US products to reach certain foreign markets.
“These countries have been ripping off our nation for far too long,” a news agency PTI report quoted Leavitt as saying, adding that they’ve shown clear disdain for American workers.
“You have 100% tariff from India on American agricultural products,” Leavitt said.
“It’s time for reciprocity,” Leavitt said and added that the US President “is going to make historic changes, and that will happen on Wednesday.”
Trump’s spokesperson also pointed to examples of tariff rates from the European Union, Japan and Canada, signaling those entities are likely among the targets of the president’s new levies. “This makes it virtually impossible for American products to be imported into these markets,” she said.
Trump’s ‘Liberation Day’
Trump will unveil a new tariff plan on April 2, which he has dubbed “Liberation Day,” in his first Rose Garden press conference of his second term.
Leavitt confirmed Monday that the full cabinet will be present for the event, but specifics of the plan remain uncertain as Trump and his administration have floated multiple, sometimes conflicting, proposals in recent weeks.
“Wednesday, it will be Liberation Day in America, as President Trump has so proudly dubbed it,” Leavitt said. “The President will be announcing a tariff plan that will roll back the unfair trade practices that have been ripping off our country for decades. He’s doing this in the best interest of the American worker.”
