The interim trade agreement between India and the United States will factor in India’s energy needs and help the country secure crude oil at more competitive prices, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said on Saturday, PTI reported.
Speaking to reporters, Goyal said both countries have agreed to work towards raising annual bilateral trade to $500 billion by 2030. He added that the proposed trade target would include India’s energy requirements such as crude oil, LNG and LPG.
“India is the fastest-growing large economy in the world, and its energy demand is rising by around 7 per cent annually. Increasing imports and having more suppliers would help India secure crude oil at more competitive prices,” he said.
Last week, India and the US announced a framework for an interim trade agreement aimed at boosting two-way trade through tariff reductions. Under the arrangement, the US will lower tariffs on Indian goods to 18 per cent from 50 per cent, while India will eliminate or reduce duties on US industrial goods and a broad range of agricultural products.
Goyal said India currently produces about 140 million tonnes of steel annually and expects output to double in the coming years. To support this expansion, the country requires large volumes of coking coal, imports of which are currently valued at around ₹1.50 lakh crore and could rise to ₹3 lakh crore.
He noted that India relies on a limited number of countries for coking coal and said diversifying suppliers would improve pricing and supply security.
The minister also said India is seeking greater access to US infrastructure, connectivity and distribution-related products to support sectors such as data centres. He added that India’s IT exports currently stand at about $200 billion, or ₹18 lakh crore, and access to advanced US equipment could help raise exports to around ₹45 lakh crore.
