US Edition‘PM Modi Didn’t Call Trump’: Lutnick Explains Where India-US Trade Deal Got Stuck
Howard Lutnick said the India-US trade deal stalled as Modi did not call Trump, causing delays that led to higher tariff rates and affected deals with other Asia-Pacific nations.
- Published January 09, 2026, Lutnick said on a podcast that the India–U.S. trade deal stalled because Prime Minister Narendra Modi did not personally call U.S. President Donald Trump.
- Assuming India would finish first, the United States negotiated and announced deals with Indonesia, the Philippines and Vietnam while expecting the India–U.S. pact to conclude earlier.
- Negotiators ended up agreeing at higher rates after Lutnick said `I have negotiated them at a higher rate`, and India later called back saying `Oh, okay, we are ready.`
- The pact includes a framework to resolve the 50% tariffs on Indian goods entering America, and so far six rounds of negotiations have been held in the India–U.S. talks.
- Amid tariff warnings, Trump warned he could raise tariffs `very quickly` amid disputes over India's Russian oil purchases, raising stakes in ongoing trade talks.
53 Articles
53 Articles
'India-US trade deal stalled after Modi did not call Trump'
India's trade pact with the United States was delayed because Prime Minister Narendra Modi did not make a telephone call to President Donald Trump to close a deal they were negotiating, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said on Friday. The trade talks fell apart last year and Trump doubled tariffs on Indian goods in August to 50%, the world's highest rate, including a levy of 25% in retaliation for India's purchases of Russian oil. "It's all set…
A diplomatic controversy erupted after a surprising statement by the US Secretary of Commerce. Howard Lutnick claims that the trade negotiations between New Delhi and Washington failed because Prime Minister Narendra Modi would not have made the final phone call that Donald Trump considered essential to the agreement. This claim caused the shock in New Delhi. The Indian press largely turned him in derision. For its part, the Indian government br…
US-India Trade Deal Stalled Because Modi Didn’t Call Trump, Commerce Chief Says
A proposed trade deal between the United States and India stalled because Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi did not call U.S. President Donald Trump to finalize it, according to U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick. During a Jan. 8 episode of the “All-In” business podcast, Lutnick described Trump’s approach to negotiations as a “staircase,” where “the first stair gets the best deal.” Lutnick said India was the second country, after the Unite…
US Commerce Secretary's remarks on India-US trade deal 'inaccurate' says India
New Delhi: India on Friday described as inaccurate US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick’s remarks that the trade deal between the two countries could not fructify, as Prime Minister Narendra Modi did not call up President Donald Trump. External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said India and the US held a series of negotiations on the deal, and that New Delhi is committed to firming it up. “We have seen the remarks. India and the US…
"Not Accurate": Centre On Trump Aide's 'PM Didn't Call' US President Remarks
India has rejected remarks by the United States Commerce Secretary, Howard Lutnick, suggesting that a long-discussed India-US trade agreement failed to materialise because Prime Minister Narendra Modi did not place a phone call to US President Trump.
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