Minister Goyal to visit US on Sept 22 for trade talks amid tariff tension, H-1B visa shock

Despite some mixed signals, negotiations between New Delhi and Washington appear to be gaining momentum following recent diplomatic exchanges

India's commerce minister Piyush Goyal will lead a delegation to the United States on Monday (September 22) for the next round of high-level trade discussions, according to a government statement. This came on a day when President Donald Trump's move to impose a prohibitively high $100,000 annual fee on H-1B visas shocked many in India as techies from the country hold the vast majority of these visas meant for high-skilled workers.

Union Minister of Commerce & Industry, Piyush Goyal.(ANI Photo)

The visit, which comes when India-US ties travel through varied emotions almost daily, aims to strengthen bilateral economic ties and address key trade issues, including the massive 50% tariffs imposed by the Trump regime.

Despite some mixed signals, negotiations between New Delhi and Washington appear to be gaining momentum following recent diplomatic exchanges. On Wednesday, US chief negotiator Brendan Lynch and his Indian counterpart Rajesh Agrawal held a day-long discussion on the proposed bilateral trade agreement (BTA) in New Delhi.

After that meeting, the commerce ministry said that the discussions with the American team were positive, with both sides agreeing to push for an early and mutually beneficial conclusion of the agreement.

India-US tariff negotiations

Talks for a trade deal have been ongoing since at least April, but sweeping reciprocal tariffs imposed by the Trump administration put a halt last month. Bonhomie between Trump and PM Narendra Modi effected a relative thaw recently.

The US had imposed a 25% reciprocal tariff that took effect August 7, followed by an additional 25% levy as a penalty for Russian oil purchases that kicked in August 27, bringing the total rate to 50%. August thus marked a sharp escalation in Washington's rhetoric, but there has since been a stark diplomatic turnaround in recent weeks.

Earlier this week, Trump called PM Modi to wish him a happy 75th birthday and thanked the Indian leader for his support in efforts to end the Ukraine war. The conversation marked their first one-on-one contact since June, though there were a couple of social-media exchanges in between.

While the tariff matter was still being resolved, President Trump on Friday signed a proclamation that restricts the entry into the United States of non-immigrants working in a specialty occupations unless their H-1B petitions are accompanied or supplemented by a payment of USD 100,000.