India faces 26% tariff in Trump’s sweeping trade policy shift
NRI PULSE STAFF REPORT
Washington, D.C., April 2, 2025: In a sweeping move, President Donald Trump announced a new set of tariffs targeting some of the United States’ largest trading partners, including India. As per the latest updates from The New York Times, India will face a 26 percent tariff, a figure Trump claims is based on a calculation of India’s average tariff against American goods. However, trade experts have raised concerns about the methodology behind this number.
According to Trump, India’s average tariff against American goods stands at 52 percent, leading him to impose what he calls a “discounted” reciprocal tariff of 26 percent. However, trade economists argue that this figure appears arbitrary, reports NYT. India’s tariff structure varies significantly across products, ranging from the 70 percent levy on motorcycles—specifically cited by Trump—to zero on certain categories. The World Trade Organization (WTO) estimates India’s trade-weighted average tariff at approximately 12 percent, considerably lower than Trump’s claimed 52 percent but still higher than the U.S. trade-weighted average of 2 to 3 percent.
During his televised tariff announcement on April 2, 5:00 PM EDT, President Donald Trump referred to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi as “a great friend,” but expressed dissatisfaction with India’s trade practices, stating that he “has not treated us right.”
Trump’s new tariff strategy assigns different rates to various countries, with China facing a 34 percent tariff, the European Union at 20 percent, Japan at 24 percent, and India at 26 percent. The scale of these tariffs has surprised many economists and policymakers, who had anticipated lower figures.
he tariffs are likely to hit Indian sectors that rely on American consumers, such as textiles, automotive components, and IT services. Indian policymakers have yet to issue an official response.
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