Washington/New Delhi: Bikes and Booze – a deadly combination indeed. Days after US president Donald Trump berated India over high customs duty imposed on Harley Davidson motorcycles, the White House has spoken out about the 150% duty imposed on the import of American whisky.
“You look at India – 150% tariff on American alcohol. Do you think that’s helping American Bourbon be exported to India? I don’t think so. 100% tariff on agricultural products from India …. ” White House press secretary Katherine Leavitt has said.
In February, Trump had flagged the issue of 100% duty on the import of Harley Davidson motorcycles by India. The US president had spoken of reciprocal tariffs being imposed by the US. In the Union budget placed before Parliament by union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman shortly after that, customs duty on certain category of motorcycles was reduced.
Will Leavitt’s statement lead to a cut in import duty on American alcohol as well? While tipplers may keep their fingers crossed, union commerce secretary Sunil Barthwal told a Parliamentary panel on Monday that the Indian government has made no commitments on trade tariff reductions to the US.
According to him, negotiations are on and India’s interests will be protected. The US has apparently demanded the removal of tariff on nearly all goods, save for agricultural products. It is unlikely that India will accede to this demand at a time when India needs to protect the interests of domestic industry.
The US continues to remain India’s largest trading partner with bilateral trade figures hitting US$ 118.2 billion in 2023-24. Trump, meanwhile, has set April 2 as the deadline for the imposition of reciprocal tariffs on Indian goods.
