The additional US customs duties in its products Indiawhich was 25% in early August, increased from today (27.8.2025) to 50%, as a punishment by the government of Republican President Donald Trump at the expense of Federal Prime Minister Narendra Monti because the Asian giant continues to buy oil. Russia.
The US president, who has caused strong disturbances worldwide since he returned to the White House in January, had announced the imposition of the punitive duty in India, expressing indignation at Moscow’s refusal to accept the Moscow. Despite the warm welcome of his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin in Alaska, he did not cancel this measure, which aims to limit Russia’s revenue and thus its ability to finance its war effort on Ukrainian territory.
For New Delhi, the choice is pragmatic. The production of Gulf states is prioritized to Europe, and India is forced to switch to other suppliers, which facilitates the decision of the Old Epirus to stop the imports of Russian hydrocarbons for the most part.
India is one of the main buyers of Russian crude oil after China. The amount of Russian oil introduced in 2024 reached almost 36% of the total, while not exceeding 2% before the war broke out in February 2022, according to official data from the Indian Ministry of Commerce.
New duties are only concerned with only part of Indian goods imported into the US market, their range is – comparatively – limited. This is in particular the iPhonesmore and more of which are assembled by Indian groups that take over subcontracts on behalf of Apple.
However, even the latest progressives will be hit by the sectoral customs duties up to even 100% that the Republican will be imposed on semiconductors and electronic products.
Indian exporting companies are afraid of decline in condolences, transfer of production to other countries, job losses. The US is the country’s most important commercial partner with the largest population in the world, Indian companies sell goods worth $ 87 billion there and now each year.
Yesterday (16.8.2025), the Confederation of Indian exporting agencies (FIEO), an influential collective body, stressed that the activity of textiles and companies exporting seafood is already being hit and called on authorities to take action to support its “businesses”.
New Delhi reiterates how hopes to close agreement with Washington for trade. But it may be difficult to prove, especially because of access to the Indian market for agricultural products and dairy products that the other side requires, a delicate issue that concerns a remarkably remarkable part of the Hindu nationalist Prime Minister Monti.
Talks between the two governments have been under way since February, but India has accepted a “much tougher negotiator” than expected, US President Trump admits.
After returning to the presidency, Trump implemented in waves of new, much higher customs duties to products from all over the world imported to the US, which are now on average higher than those in the early years of 1910, with the exception of a few weeks of 2025, according to the World Trade Organization.
To limit the consequences in his country, Indian Prime Minister Monti assured that it would “reduce the tax burden of ordinary citizen” In his speech on the Day of Independence (August 15).
Stimulating the domestic market is now necessary for the Indian economy, as economists predict that in the absence of an agreement between Washington and New Delhi, the growth of India’s economy may slow down, falling below the 6%barrier.
The IMF predicted in late July that India’s growth would reach 6.4% of GDP this year.
New Delhi, reacting, began a process of approaching Beijing. This is though the relations between the two Asian forces passed a storm after the deadly conflicts of the two countries’ armies in the Himalayas in 2020.