'Will not hurt farmers, MSMEs': Piyush Goyal says India 'fully protected' in US trade deal

NEW DELHI: Commerce minister Piyush Goyal on Saturday assured that the India-US trade deal framework will not harm Indian farmers, MSMEs, artisans, or craftsmen, and said their interests remain fully protected.

"I can say with absolute certainty that the farmers, MSMEs, artisans, and craftsmen of India will not suffer any kind of loss," Goyal said in a press conference.




He said the agreement will instead help Indian farmers by opening the US market to their products. "Agricultural products from Indian farmers will be exported to the United States at zero duty. At the same time, no tariff concessions have been granted for agricultural products from US farmers entering the Indian market," he said.

Goyal said the deal improves conditions for Indian exporters. "The 50% reciprocal tariff has been reduced to 18% which is less compared to our neighbouring countries, and will provide a lot of help to our exporters. The deal brings new hopes and opportunities in India's growth story," he said.

The commerce minister stressed that Indian producers will gain more access to the US market. "I can state categorically and without any hesitation that India's farmers, MSMEs, artisans, and craftsmen will not suffer any loss. On the contrary, India will benefit from greater access to the US market," he said.

The minister said the agreement will boost employment and support labour-intensive sectors. "It is a big thrust to MSMEs employing a large number of women and youth. With exports from labour intensive sectors like textiles & apparel, leather & footwear, toys, and gems & jewellery to the US set to scale, lakhs of jobs will be created while boosting domestic manufacturing," he added.

He said tariffs will go down to zero on several key Indian export sectors. "Additionally, tariffs will go down to zero on a wide range of goods, including generic pharmaceuticals, gems & diamonds, and aircraft parts, thereby further enhancing India's export competitiveness and Make in India," Goyal said.

He added that several agricultural and food products will also benefit. "These also include spices, tea, coffee, coconut oil, cashew nuts, and several fruits and vegetables such as avocado, banana, mango, pineapple, and mushrooms, along with select bakery products," he said.