The long-awaited and painstakingly negotiated trade framework between the United States and India is on the precipice of completion, according to India’s Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal.

On Thursday, the official said the nation had recently finalized nine free trade agreements with other nations, “and I include the U.S., which is almost done and dusted,” according to the Hindu Businessline. The trade pact will be executed once the U.S. provides India with competitive advantages over its regional competitors, Goyal added.

India has been fighting for a better tariff rate than other export hubs across Asia while also navigating persistent tensions with the U.S. over its purchases of Russian energy products.

In August 2025, President Donald Trump levied an additional 25 percent tariff on Indian imports—on top of the already hefty 25 percent rate established under his “reciprocal” tariff scheme—as a result of India’s purchases of Russian oil. That edict was rolled back in February as the nations announced that they had reached a consensus on a phase-one framework for a bilateral deal.

However, India’s economic ties to Russia have continued to hamper a deal. Earlier this month, Congress passed the Sanctioning Russia Act , which empowers the president to hit the five largest purchasers of Russian oil—including India and China—with tariffs of up to 100 percent. Trump has not announced his intention to move forward with those duties as of yet.

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