This visit by the US officials would be the second after imposing a 25% tariff and an additional 25% penalty on Indian goods entering the US market for buying Russian crude oil.
The visit is crucial as India and the US work towards finalizing the first tranche of the pact.
“The team is likely to arrive next week. The dates are being finalized and discussions are underway,” one of the sources said.
This visit by the US officials would be the second after imposing a 25 per cent tariff and an additional 25 per cent penalty on Indian goods entering the US market for buying Russian crude oil.
The team had previously visited on September 16.
On September 22, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal also led an official delegation to the US for trade talks.
He was accompanied by the then special secretary of the ministry, Rajesh Agrawal and other officials. Agrawal is now India’s Commerce Minister.
The chief US negotiator for the pact is Brendan Lynch.
Next week’s visit would be important as Agrawal recently stated that India hopes to conclude a framework agreement with the US this year itself, which should address the tariff issue to the benefit of Indian exporters.
While noting that the Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA) will take time, Agrawal has said India is engaged in protracted negotiations with the US on a framework trade agreement that will address the mutual tariff challenge faced by Indian exporters today.
India and the US are in two parallel negotiations: one on a framework trade deal to tackle tariffs and another on a comprehensive trade deal.
In February, leaders of the two countries instructed officials to negotiate a proposed bilateral trade agreement (BTA).
The first tranche of the pact was planned to be completed in autumn 2025. Six rounds of negotiations have been held so far. The pact aims to more than double bilateral trade from the current $191 billion to $500 billion by 2030.
Goyal visited Washington earlier in May. He held discussions with US Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick in Washington.
The US remained India’s largest trading partner for the fourth year in a row in 2024-25, with bilateral trade worth $131.84 billion ($86.5 billion in exports).
The US accounts for about 18 percent of India’s total merchandise exports, 6.22 percent of its imports and 10.73 percent of the country’s total merchandise trade.
India’s merchandise exports to the US fell for the second month in a row in October, falling 8.58 percent to $6.3 billion due to the hefty tariffs imposed by Washington, while imports rose 13.89 percent to $4.46 billion during the month, commerce ministry data showed.
Published on December 5, 2025
#team #visit #India #week #trade #talks #sources