US Tariffs Impact: Exporters Seek Urgent Fiscal, Policy Support To Tide Over Challenges
At interactions with industry leaders over the weekend, Goyal said the government was actively engaging with the US, but added that all negotiations would be conducted firmly, without compromising.
Indian exporters urged the government to extend fiscal and policy support to help mitigate the adverse impact of the steep 25% tariffs imposed by the United States, even as Union Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal assured them that India will not yield to pressure in the ongoing trade negotiations with Washington.
At interactions with industry leaders over the weekend, Goyal said the government was actively engaging with the US, but added that all negotiations would be conducted firmly, without compromising on "core national interests."
He acknowledged the stress exporters are under and said the government was considering steps to reduce manufacturing and transaction costs, including electricity, logistics, labour, and banking reforms, to help exporters regain competitiveness and protect jobs.
“We have also requested for some form of fiscal support, which the government will examine,” said Vijay Agarwal, Chairman of Texprocil. He added that exporters were invited to submit actionable suggestions under separate heads such as GST, banking, insurance, employment, energy, logistics, and export incentive schemes such as RoDTEP and RoSCTL (Rebate of State and Central Taxes and Levies).
Exporters across sectors also urged the government to launch the Rs 2,250-crore Export Promotion Mission, which has been in the works since February this year but hasn't been implemented yet.
Engineering exporters flagged key pending issues including the need for interest subvention, Market Access Initiative (MAI) dues, and clarity on RoDTEP benefits for the steel sector. “There is still no visibility on US tariffs coming down. We’ve also urged fast-tracking of FTAs with Chile, Peru, Mexico and the EU,” said Pankaj Chadha, Chairman of the Engineering Export Promotion Council (EEPC).
Government officials indicated that the negotiations with the US may take time, and in the interim, efforts will focus on reforms to strengthen the overall export ecosystem.
