 "Trump calls India–US trade ‘one-sided disaster’. Here’s how the reality is different")
US President Donald Trump continues to attack India.
Trump, in the backdrop of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to China for the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), called the trade relationship between India and the United States a “one-sided disaster.” Trump also claimed that India had offered to cut the tariffs levied on the US to nothing.
“What few people understand is that we do very little business with India, but they do a tremendous amount of business with us,” the US president wrote on Truth Social. “In other words, they sell us massive amounts of goods, their biggest ‘client’, but we sell them very little… a totally one-sided relationship, and it has been for many decades.”
“They have now offered to cut their tariffs to nothing, but it’s getting late. They should have done so years ago,” he added.
His remarks come amid Modi, Xi and Putin displaying bonhomie and solidarity at the SCO. They also follow stalled talks on a bilateral trade agreement between New Delhi and Washington – to the frustration of Trump and senior White House officials.
Trump had announced his “Liberation Day” tariffs in April on dozens of trading partners including India. He has since imposed a 25 per cent tariff on India, plus an additional 25 per cent penalty for buying crude oil from Russia . New Delhi has slammed the tariffs as “unreasonable, unfair and unjust.”
Can Trump’s remarks possibly be true? What does the data show?
India–US trade relationship
In 2025, the United States imported goods worth $56.3 billion from India , while New Delhi imported goods worth $22.1 billion from Washington – leaving India with a trade surplus of $34.3 billion. Trade between India and the United States touched $212.3 billion in 2024, an increase of 8.3 per cent from 2023 when it stood at $196 billion.
The US imports from India include:
Pharmaceuticals (mostly generic medicines)
Gems and jewellery
Electrical and electronic equipment
Textiles and apparel
Petroleum products
Machinery and auto parts
Organic chemicals
Basmati rice
Handicrafts and home décor
Leather and footwear
India imports from the US include:
Crude oil and petroleum products
Coal and coke
Cut and polished diamonds
Electrical machinery
Aircraft, spacecraft and parts
Gold
Total goods trade between the two nations was valued at $128.9 billion in 2024. The US exported goods worth $41.5 billion to India, an increase of three per cent from 2023. Meanwhile, it imported goods worth $87.3 billion from India – a trade deficit of $45.8 billion.
When it comes to services, the picture is more balanced. The total services trade between the two countries was $83.4 billion in 2024. Washington exported services worth $41.8 billion to New Delhi – a 15.9 per cent rise from 2023. India exported services worth $41.6 billion to the US – a 15.4 per cent increase from 2023.
The US is India’s largest bilateral trading partner, while India ranked as Washington’s 10th largest trading partner in 2023.
Trump has long been obsessed with trade deficits, accusing countries with surpluses against the US of “ripping them off.” Despite his personal rapport with Modi, Trump has described India as a “dead economy” alongside Russia, and has slammed what he calls “obnoxious” trade barriers. He has previously referred to India as a “tariff king” and “an abuser of tariffs” – claims not supported by trade data.
During Modi’s trip to the US in February, the two countries vowed to double bilateral trade to $500 billion by 2030. At the time, Trump called Modi a “great leader,” while Modi referred to Trump as a “good friend.”
“The people of America are aware of President Trump’s motto, ‘Make America Great Again’ or MAGA,” Modi said. “Borrowing an expression from the US, our vision for a developed India is to ‘Make India Great Again’, or MIGA. When America and India work together, when it’s MAGA plus MIGA, it becomes mega – a mega partnership for prosperity.”
“One thing that I deeply appreciate and I learned from President Trump is that he keeps the national interest supreme,” Modi added. “And like him, I also keep the national interest of India at the top of everything else.”
However, much has changed since then.
Experts warn Trump’s latest tariffs could impact nearly 60 per cent of India’s total exports to the US – around $63.5 billion worth of goods. Textiles and garments, gems and jewellery, leather and footwear, chemicals, electrical and mechanical machinery, and seafood (mainly shrimp) could take a huge hit if the tariffs remain. India also has to compete with peers such as Bangladesh and Vietnam – on both of whom Trump has imposed less burdensome tariffs – for US market share.
Arms and equipment
It’s not just goods and services. India also continues to buy arms and equipment from the United States. Since 2020, New Delhi has purchased or contracted arms and equipment worth billions of dollars from Washington. One report puts the figure at $15 billion since 2018, including a $2.99 billion contract for Predator drones.
Since 2008, India has bought or contracted arms and equipment worth $24 billion, according to US government data. In 2021, the US government notified Congress of potential arms sales to India totalling just over $2.5 billion. In 2024, notifications exceeded $5 billion.
New Delhi has been the world’s second-largest arms importer – accounting for 8.3 per cent of total global imports – between 2020 and 2024, after Ukraine. Russia, traditionally its top supplier, remains so. However, Russia’s share of weapons sent to India has dropped from over 50 per cent in 2019 to 35 per cent in 2024. France now accounts for nearly 30 per cent of India’s arms imports. India has also been sourcing weapons from Israel and South Korea.
In early August, there were reports that India had put planned purchases of US weapons on hold. New Delhi also reportedly cancelled a visit by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh to Washington. India has denied such reports, calling them “false and fabricated.”
With inputs from agencies
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