Bilateral Updates

India and the US are moving towards closing all the open ends of the interim trade agreement, and both sides are likely to execute the "very, very vibrant" first phase of the pact by the middle of next month, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said on Friday. He said that the US team was in New Delhi from June 2-4 for finalisation of the deal. They held discussions with the Indian team.

India is seeking to diversify its sourcing network for new-age manufacturing for which it has set ambitious targets. But China’s grip over India’s clean-energy and advanced manufacturing supply chain is only getting stronger. The northern neighbour controls more than 84% of India’s lithium-ion battery imports, 78% of permanent magnet supplies and over half of lithium carbonate imports.

China has agreed to ramp up trade for U.S. agricultural products such as beef and poultry, buying at an annualised rate of $17 billion per year for 2026 and at that level for 2027 and 2028, the White House announced on Sunday (May 17, 2026).