 "US President Donald Trump and Indian Prime Narendra Modi photographed during a meeting in 2019. File Image / Reuters")
Just ahead of his meeting with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the White House, US President Donald Trump criticised India for its ‘high tariff’ culture, saying, “they have the highest tariffs".
The president added that India was a “hard place” to do business.
Trump’s comments on Modi’s meeting with Elon Musk
Donald Trump was asked about PM Modi’s meeting with Tesla CEO Elon Musk earlier in the day.
“They met. I assume he wants to do business in India. But India is a very hard place to do business in because of the tariffs. They have the highest tariffs…It’s a hard place to do business. I would imagine he met possibly because he is running a company, he is doing this as something that he has felt strongly about for a long time,” said the US president.
Trump rakes issue of Harley-Davidson motorcycles
Trump also took the opportunity to highlight the case of Harley-Davidson motorcycles, who he said had to set up manufacturing plants in India to avoid paying heavy export duty.
“Traditionally, India is right at the top of the pack pretty much. There are a couple of smaller countries that are actually more but India charges tremendous tariffs. I remember when Harley Davidson couldn’t sell their motorbikes in India because of the fact that in India - the tax was so high, the tariff was so high, and Harley was forced to build,” said Trump.
USA’s reciprocal tariff regime
The Trump administration argues that the reciprocal tariff regime is to bolster US economic and national security by forcing foreign nations to adhere to fairer trade practices.
According to a White House official, the tariffs would not come in effect immediately and may take weeks.
The move is set to hit nations like India and Japan as well as the European Union the hardest, reported American media.
(With inputs from agencies)