Washington DC [US], April 3 : US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick avoided a question on tariffs on India.
When ANI reached out to Lutnick regarding a query on the tariffs imposed by US President Donald Trump, he avoided the question and walked away.
Trump announced new import tariffs on Wednesday (local time), outlining the rates to be imposed on countries around the world. India will face a 26 percent tariff.
Calling Prime Minister Narendra Modi a "great friend," Trump said that India charges the US 52 per cent, and "we charge them almost nothing."
Trump's announcement came while he addressed the Make America Wealthy Again Event.
At the event, Trump said, "India very, very tough. The Prime Minister just left and is a great friend of mine, but you are not treating us right. They charge us 52 per cent, and we charge them almost nothing..."
Trump further said, "The United States charges other countries only a 2.4 tariff on motorcycles. Meanwhile, Thailand and others are charging much higher prices like 60%, India charges 70%, Vietnam charges 75%, and others are even higher than that."
The US President further said that a 25 per cent tariff would be imposed on all foreign-made automobiles.
"Such horrendous imbalances have devastated our industrial base and put our national security at risk. I don't blame these other countries at all for this calamity. I blame former presidents and past leaders who weren't doing their job... Effective at midnight, we will impose a 25% tariff on all foreign-made automobiles," Trump said.
According to experts, Indian textile, engineering goods, electronics, and gem and jewellery sector exporters are expected to be hardest hit by Donald Trump's tariffs.
Ajay Bagga, a banking and international stocks expert, told ANI that these tariffs are based on exaggerated calculations, which include actual customs duties, alleged currency manipulation, and GST. He described the shift in US trade policy as moving from "America First" to "America Alone."