New Delhi, Feb 12 (UNI) Union Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal, referring to the US tariffs on the textiles sector, as compared to Bangladesh, said “India also has the same facility, and we will also get it”.
“Right now, our framework agreement is being made. When the interim agreement is finalised, then you will get to see this in the fine print,” Piyush Goyal said while speaking with the reporters.
Responding to Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi’s remarks in the Parliament, Goyal said, “Rahul Gandhi spread another lie in the Parliament that Bangladesh has got more benefits from the trade agreement with the US than India. Just as Bangladesh has a facility that if raw material is purchased from America, then if you process it and make cloth and export it, then it will be available at zero reciprocal tariff.”
Notably, the US and Bangladesh have signed an agreement reducing reciprocal tariffs to 19 percent and offering zero-duty entry for garments made with US-origin cotton and man-made fibres.
As per the joint statement between the US and Bangladesh, “The United States commits to establishing a mechanism that will allow for certain textile and apparel goods from Bangladesh to receive a zero reciprocal tariff rate. This mechanism will provide that a to-be-specified volume of apparel and textile imports from Bangladesh can enter the United States at this reduced tariff rate, but this volume shall be determined in relation to the quantity of exports of textiles, e.g., US produced cotton and man-made fiber textile inputs, from the United States.”
Piyush Goyal further said Rahul Gandhi should apologise to the farmers of India, fishermen, workers working in MSME, and Vishwakarmas.
Earlier, on the trade deal, Piyush Goyal had said, “India and the US have just signed a historic interim trade deal framework, which marks a major milestone in India’s global trade engagement, securing sustained preferential access for exports in the US market valued at over USD 30 trillion.”
He had also said that the India–US trade agreement is a landmark deal that safeguards India’s core interests while opening up vast economic opportunities for the country.
He further emphasised that sensitive sectors such as agriculture and dairy have been fully protected.
“Prime Minister Modi has always championed agriculture and dairy, and their interests have been safeguarded in this agreement. The deal has generated widespread enthusiasm across the country,” he said.
The United States and India last week announced that they have reached a framework for an Interim Trade Agreement, marking a significant step toward strengthening economic ties and advancing negotiations for a comprehensive Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA), according to a joint statement released by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry.
