India will gain strong edge in US Trade Deal: Goyal

NEW DELHI Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal on Thursday said India would have a “strong comparative advantage” under the proposed trade agreement with the United States, assuring that farmers’ interests and other sensitive sectors would remain protected. Speaking at the fourth ISID-IDRA National Conference on India’s Industrial Transformation, Goyal expressed confidence that people would “celebrate” when the agreement’s details were made public. He said India was seeking more than market access through trade agreements, with investments and services also forming important parts of negotiations. “I have the courage and conviction to announce that the US trade deal, once details are out, the people of India will celebrate that not a single sensitive interest of our farmers or any stakeholder has been compromised,” Goyal said. He added that India would instead secure a strong comparative advantage. Goyal also criticised attempts to politicise the negotiations, saying some critics were commenting before the agreement’s details had been released. He defended the Centre’s record on trade agreements and said he had yet to encounter a single flaw in the eight agreements concluded by the government. India has announced trade agreements with the European Union, the United Kingdom, New Zealand, Oman, Australia, the United Arab Emirates and Mauritius. It has also signed the Trade and Economic Partnership Agreement with the European Free Trade Association, comprising Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland. Negotiations for the India-US agreement are in their final stages, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said last week, while cautioning that the remaining issues could still present challenges. The negotiating teams are working to bridge differences, he added. US President Donald Trump recently described the agreement as “pretty close”. During his India visit, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio also indicated that only a small number of issues remained unresolved, expressing hope for an announcement soon. However, the agreement has not yet been formally concluded, and its final terms remain undisclosed. Goyal maintained that India’s priority was to expand exports while safeguarding farmers and other sensitive stakeholders.