Indian commerce ministry official says exporters will be encouraged to diversify to markets such as China and the Middle East
Hello and welcome to the US politics live blog. My name is Tom Ambrose and I will be bringing you all the latest news lines over the next few hours.
We start with news that president Donald Trump’s doubling of tariffs on goods from India to as much as 50% took effect as scheduled on Wednesday, escalating tensions between the world’s two largest democracies and strategic partners.
A punitive 25% tariff imposed due to India’s purchases of Russian oil adds to Trump’s prior 25% tariff on many products from India. It takes total duties to as high as 50% for goods such as garments, gems and jewellery, footwear, sporting goods, furniture and chemicals – among the highest imposed by the US and on par with Brazil and China.
India and the US have held five rounds of discussions since April to reach a trade agreement, but differences over the opening up of India’s vast farm and dairy sectors, and its purchases of Russian oil led to a breakdown of talks.
