Trump India trade Dispute: Will this lead to a trade war

Editor: Johnathan Meyers | Tactical Investor

Trump India trade Dispute

India officially entered the ongoing global trade war in June when it announced retaliatory tariffs against Washington’s steel and aluminium import duties. If implemented, the South Asian nation risks a targeted response from President Donald Trump’s White House.

New Delhi’s proposed tariff hikes on 29 U.S. products — including almonds, apples, walnuts and certain stainless steel products — are worth $241 million and were meant to go into effect on Aug. 4.

But Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government decided last week to delay the hikes, and may postpone tariffs until next month amid ongoing negotiations with U.S. officials, according to local news outlets.

If the two countries cannot reach a deal, New Delhi’s tariffs will go ahead as planned — a move that could push Washington to respond with India-specific actions, similiar to what it’s done with China. That, in turn, could spell trouble ahead for Modi as he campaigns for re-election next year, analysts say.

If the White House turns its attention to India’s biggest exports to the U.S. — such as diamonds, seafood, auto parts and medicine — that could be risky for Modi and the Indian economy, said Amitendu Palit, a senior fellow specializing in trade and economic policy at the National University of Singapore. Full Story

Top-Most Priority, Says PM Modi At White House

At their first-ever meeting today, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US President Donald Trump struck a common note on terrorism, saying eliminating it is among the top-most priorities for the two nations. In a joint briefing with President Trump after a one-on-one meeting and delegation-level talks at the White House, PM Modi said “We talked about terrorism, extremism and radicalisation and agreed to cooperate on this.” Ahead of the meeting, the US State Department had declared Syed Salahuddin, chief of terror group Hizbul Mujahideen, a Specially Designated Global Terrorist in a move that India called a vindication of its stand against cross-border terrorism emanating from Pakistan.

Talking tough on terror, President Trump at the joint press briefing said both nations are “determined” to destroy terrorist organisations and the radical ideology that drives them. “Both our nations have been struck by the evils of terrorism and we are both determined to destroy terrorist organisations and the radical ideology that drives them. We will destroy radical Islamic terrorism,” he said.
Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar said the two leaders also called upon Pakistan to not let its territory be used to launch terror attacks. “They asked Pakistan to bring the perpetrators of 26/11, Pathankot and other terror attacks to justice,” Mr Jaishankar said. Full Story

Modi in US: Dinner with President Donald Trump

President Donald Trump will host visiting Prime Minister Narendra Modi for a “working dinner” on Monday, the first for a foreign leader at the White House in his five-month term. Trump has hosted dinners for Chinese President Xi Jinping and Japanese PM Shinzo Abe at the Mar-a-Lago golf estate in Florida, but this is the first such dinner at the White House.

Officials, who are keen to portray “good optics” for the Modi visit, are projecting the dinner invite as a reflection of Trump’s personal warmth for Modi.

The PM, who is visiting the US for the fifth time in three years, will arrive Saturday evening (Sunday morning India time). Modi arrives to a vastly changed atmosphere from the time he was last in Washington DC, just over a year ago, and this is his first sit-down meeting with Trump. They have spoken thrice since Trump was elected. Their last conversation was a congratulatory call made by the US President after the BJP won the Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections.

Modi will stay at the 200-year-old Willard Hotel, located less than 500 metres from the White House. Full Story