New Delhi, April 2 (IANS) India has received the ‘best’ US deal among competitors and the country is “sitting in a sweet spot” with the trade pact, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said on Thursday.

Addressing the media on the 14th Ministerial Conference of the World Trade Organization (WTO), held recently in Cameroon, the minister said India should get “preferential market access” in the bilateral trade pact signed with the United States.

Preferential market access is the exception granted from tariffs on select product lines.

India finalised the interim trade deal with the US on February 2, which lowered the tariffs levied on the country sharply from 50 per cent to 18 per cent.

The tariffs were later ruled as “illegal” by the nine-judge US bench on February 20. At the time, the Donald Trump administration announced an immediate tariff on 10 per cent on all trading partners.

Despite geo-political upheavals, India and the US continue to remain engaged in discussions for a mutually beneficial bilateral trade agreement. Both sides are actively working towards a trade agreement that will benefit businesses and economic cooperation in both nations.

India and the US are also increasing diplomatic and economic engagement across multiple areas, including trade, defence and supply chain cooperation.

Goyal further said that on agriculture, India reiterated the need for a permanent solution on public stockholding and Special Safeguard Mechanism at the WTO ‘MC14’ conference.

“The PM Modi Government remains committed to protecting the interests of our farmers and ensuring food security. India stands for what is right,” the minister said.

“We stood against plurilaterals like the Investment Facilitation for Development (IFD) Agreement and did not agree to their incorporation into the WTO framework without proper guardrails and consensus at WTO MC14,” said Goyal in a post on X.

At the WTO conference, Goyal highlighted India’s active role in the intense deliberations on WTO reforms while safeguarding the interests of our citizens especially our farmers and fisherfolk.

“Also emphasised how India reiterated its strong commitment to ensuring a fair, transparent and rules-based multilateral trading system,” he noted.

Goyal said that during his engagements at the WTO ‘MC14’ conference, it was highlighted that India has been using sustainable fishing practices for thousands of years.

“India demands equitable, development-focused outcomes, which benefit our fisherfolk significantly,” the minister said during the briefing.

–IANS

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