India-US trade deal: What it means for the tech and digital sector? Data center collab, GPUs & more

The newly announced interim trade deal between India and the United States lays out a roadmap to deepen collaboration on the digital trade and technology front. The two nations released a joint statement on Saturday, announcing details of the interim trade agreement. “The US and India are pleased to announce that they have reached a framework for an Interim Agreement regarding reciprocal and mutually beneficial trade,” the joint statement said.According to the pact, India will “purchase $500 billion of US energy products, aircraft and aircraft parts, precious metals, technology products, and coking coal over the next 5 years.” The two nations will step up collaboration in technology trade, with a focus on Graphics Processing Units (GPUs) and other equipment essential for data centre operations, alongside a broader expansion of joint work in technology. “ India and the United States will significantly increase trade in technology products, including Graphics Processing Units (GPUs) and other goods used in data centers, and expand joint technology cooperation,” the statement said. The United States and India plan to talk about their standards and product approval processes in sectors they both agree on, so that meeting technical rules becomes easier. “For the purposes of enhancing ease of compliance with applicable technical regulations, the United States and India intend to discuss their respective standards and conformity assessment procedures for mutually agreed sectors.”Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman also highlighted the potential boost to India’s digital ecosystem. “The India-US Interim Agreement framework will strengthen India’s lead in the digital services sector. The joint technology cooperation will position India as a hub for AI, data and digital services. ”Alongside the push in technology trade, tariff changes also focus on increasing competitiveness of Indian exports to the US. The reciprocal tariff rate on Indian goods entering the US will fall to 18%. At the same time, US President Donald Trump has signed an executive order revoking the 25% tariffs that had been imposed on India for its purchase of crude oil from Russia.Even as duties on Indian shipments are reduced, India will remove or cut import tariffs on all US industrial goods and some American food and agricultural products, the statement said.