Trump slams India's "high tariffs", says reciprocal tariffs will boost US jobs and production

Trump made the remarks during a press conference in which he was asked about the meeting of Tesla CEO Elon Musk with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

"They met. I assume he wants to do business in India. But India is a very hard place to do business in because of the tariffs. They have the highest tariffs...It's a hard place to do business. I would imagine he met possibly because he is running a company, he is doing this as something that he has felt strongly about for a long time," Trump said.

Speaking on the issue of reciprocal tariffs, Trump highlighted India's past trade policies, citing the case of Harley-Davidson motorcycles as an example of how American companies have been forced to set up manufacturing units abroad to bypass exorbitant import duties.

"Traditionally, India is right at the top of the pack pretty much. There are a couple of smaller countries that are actually more but India charges tremendous tariffs. I remember when Harley Davidson couldn't sell their motorbikes in India because of the fact that in India - the tax was so high, the tariff was so high, and Harley was forced to build," he said, US Network Pool via Reuters reported.

"But I think they built a factory in India in order to avoid paying the tariffs. And that's what people can do with us. They can build a factory here, a plant or whatever it may be here and that includes the medical, that includes cars, that includes chips and semiconductors."

Trump reiterated that reciprocal tariffs are necessary to ensure fair trade, stating that countries imposing high tariffs on US goods will face identical charges when exporting to the United States. He also underscored the broader economic impact of this policy, asserting that it would create jobs and encourage more domestic production.

"There could be some short term disturbances but in long term it is going to make a fortune," said Trump

"This is something that should have been done many years ago. China did it at a level that probably nobody has ever seen before...It is going to mean a tremendous amount of jobs, and ultimately, prices will stay the same," he added.

Howard Lutnick, Trump's nominee for Commerce Secretary, confirmed that studies on the implementation of reciprocal tariffs are expected to be completed by April 1, after which the President could take action as early as April 2. Lutnick emphasized that if foreign nations lower their tariffs, US production costs will decrease, leading to economic benefits for American consumers.

"Our studies should be all complete by April 1st. So, we'll hand the president the opportunity to start on April 2nd if he wants. So I think we'll be ready to go on April 1st, and we'll hand it to the President and he'll make his decisions. But remember, if they drop their tariffs, prices for Americans are coming down, our production is going up, and our costs are going down. Remember, it's a two-way street. That's why it's called reciprocal," Lutnick stated.

With the US gearing up for a new round of trade measures, analysts warn that reciprocal tariffs could escalate global trade tensions, particularly with countries like India, which maintains an average tariff of around 11 per cent across various goods.

While key sectors such as steel, aluminium, automobiles, and dairy could face adverse impacts, India's semiconductor and pharmaceutical exports are expected to be exempt, offering some relief for the domestic industry. (ANI)