It is too early to gauge the full impact of Washington’s punitive 50% tariff on India, levied on the grounds of its large trade surplus, high trade barriers and Russian oil purchases, but the signs suggest pain lies ahead. More than 70% of India’s goods exports to the US will be impacted. Services will be hit, too, after President Donald Trump announced a $100,000 fee on H1B work visas, 70% of which go to Indians. What has remained unchanged despite these tariff woes, however, is Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s refusal to move the needle on Russian oil imports, at least for now.
