President Trump called on India Wednesday night t0 withdraw its tariffs on U.S. products, ahead of meeting with the country's Prime Minister Narendra Modi at this week's G20 summit.
I look forward to speaking with Prime Minister Modi about the fact that India, for years having put very high Tariffs against the United States, just recently increased the Tariffs even further. This is unacceptable and the Tariffs must be withdrawn!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 27, 2019
The big picture: India imposed higher tariffs on 28 U.S. products this month, after the Trump administration withdrew the South Asian country's preferential trade status under the Generalized System of Preferences scheme. India was the biggest beneficiary of the scheme, which allowed duty-free exports of up to $5.6 billion, per Reuters.
- Secretary of State Mike Pompeo was in New Delhi on Wednesday, where he said he's "very confident" that the 2 countries could find a solution to the trade standoff.
Why it matters: It's the latest escalation in President Trump's trade war, designed to cut U.S. deficits. The tariffs on products including almonds and apples are as high as 70% on some items and are in response to Washington's refusal to exempt Delhi from higher taxes on steel and aluminium imports.
