India ‘engaged’ with U.S. on trade deal, says Commerce Secretary as officials warn of delays

India's Commerce Secretary confirms ongoing U.S. trade deal discussions, pending clarity on U.S. tariff structure amid potential delays.

India remains engaged with the U.S. on a trade deal, Commerce Secretary Rajesh Agrawal said on Monday (March 16, 2026). Sources in the government, however, said that India will now sign a trade deal with the U.S. only once that country has settled its “tariff architecture” and has clarified the country-wise tariff rates. 

This comes against the backdrop of two trade-related investigations the U.S. is carrying out that could potentially see additional tariffs being levied on a number of countries, including India. 

“Pursuant to the U.S. Supreme Court judgement dated 20th February 2026 invalidating reciprocal tariffs, the reciprocal tariffs are no longer in force,” Mr. Agrawal said at a press briefing. 

“The U.S. Government has issued Executive Orders imposing 10% tariffs pursuant to section 122 of the Trade Act 1974 on certain products from all countries,” he added. “India remains engaged with the U.S. side for a mutually beneficial trade agreement.”

India and the U.S. announced a trade deal on February 2, 2026 and a joint statement on the finalisation of a framework for the deal was released on February 7. At the time, Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal had said that the deal would be signed in March. 

The U.S. Supreme Court on February 20 ruled against the validity of U.S. President Donald Trump’s use of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) to levy reciprocal tariffs on America’s trade partners. It is after this that the U.S. imposed the 10% tariffs on all its trade partners under Section 122 of the Trade Act, 1974. These tariffs are in force for a period of 150 days from February 24.