Editor’s Note
This article outlines the timeline for U.S. tariff increases on India, which began on August 7 and are set to double by August 27, potentially raising the total levy to 50%. The measures are linked to India’s purchase of Russian oil.
The first tranche of 25% tariffs announced by United States President Donald Trump came into effect on Thursday, August 7. This will double by August 27, when the additional 25% tariffs announced by Trump, as a penalty for purchasing oil from Russia, also come into effect, making the total US tariffs on India a whopping 50%.
With the imposition of 50% tariffs on Indian exports to the US, sectors such as leather, chemicals, footwear, gems and jewellery, textiles and shrimp are among those which will be severely affected, according to industry experts.
Due to such high tariffs, the Indian goods in the US will become much more expensive, which would lead to a nearly half-slash in US exports, according to the think tank GTRI.
The newly announced 50% US tariffs are in addition to the existing standard import duty in the US.
According to GTRI, some Indian products that will now face high US export duties include:
Organic chemicals – 54% total duty
Carpets – 52.9%
Knitted clothes – 63.9%
Woven clothes – 60.3%
Textiles, made ups – 59%
Diamonds, gold – 52.1%
Machinery and mechanical appliances – 51.3%
Furniture, bedding, mattresses – 52.3%
In the last fiscal year, India and the US had a bilateral trade of $131.8 billion, of which $86.5 billion were in exports and $45.3 billion in imports.
Among the sectors which are likely to bear the brunt of the high 50% tariffs are:
Textiles/ clothing ($10.3 billion)
Gems and jewellery ($12 billion)
Shrimp ($2.24 billion)
Leather and footwear ($1.18 billion)
Chemicals ($2.34 billion)
Electrical and mechanical machinery (about $9 billion).
According to Yogesh Gupta, MD of Kolkata-based seafood exporter Megaa Moda, the new tariffs will significantly increase the prices of India’s shrimp in the US market.
The Confederation of Indian Textile Industry (CITI) also expressed concern about the impacts of 50% US tariffs on Indian textiles exporters, as it is one of India’s largest markets for exports in this sector.
According to Kama Jewelry’s MD Colin Shah, the tariffs will come as a big blow directly to about 55% of India’s shipments to the US. He said that the 50% tariff puts Indian exporters at a 30–35% disadvantage compared to exporters from other countries who face lower duties.