Modi, Vance welcome 'significant progress' in India-US trade deal

India and the United States have welcomed “significant progress” in ongoing negotiations for a mutually beneficial Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA), the government said following a meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and American Vice President J D Vance in New Delhi on Monday.

Visiting India amid a globally unfolding trade war, Vance held detailed discussions with Modi, reviewing and positively assessing the progress in various areas of bilateral cooperation, the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) said in a statement.

Both countries also noted continued efforts to enhance cooperation in areas such as energy, defence, strategic technologies, and other sectors, according to the PMO. The two leaders exchanged views on a range of regional and global issues of mutual interest, and called for dialogue and diplomacy as the preferred path forward.

The Prime Minister conveyed greetings to US President Donald Trump, the PMO added, saying he looked forward to Trump’s visit to India later this year. The American president is expected to travel to India in September or October to attend the fifth Quad Leaders’ Summit.

Both sides hope to conclude the first tranche of the BTA by the fall (September-October) this year.

India said the BTA would be centred on the “welfare of the people of the two countries”. The United States remains India’s largest export destination, with a trade surplus that widened to $41 billion in FY25, from $35 billion the previous year. While imports from the US grew 7.4 per cent to $45.3 billion, exports surged by 11 per cent to reach $86.5 billion -- a trade imbalance the Trump administration has frequently highlighted.

Vance — accompanied by Second Lady Usha Vance and their children Ewan, Vivek, and Mirabel — was hosted at the Prime Minister's residence. Earlier in the day, the family visited the Akshardham Temple in Delhi.

Vance's first official visit to India coincides with Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s five-day trip to the United States, where she will take part in the Spring Meetings of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank, along with several key G20 meetings. Sitharaman is also scheduled to hold bilateral talks with her counterparts from countries, including Argentina, Bahrain, Germany, France, Luxembourg, Saudi Arabia, the United Kingdom and the United States.

Later this week, a team of commerce department officials, led by chief negotiator and commerce secretary-designate Rajesh Agarwal, will hold discussions with their US counterparts in Washington DC. The meetings, which are set to begin on April 23, will continue for three days.

Vance arrived in New Delhi on Monday morning after a three-day official visit to Italy. The four-day trip to India is expected to deepen the India–US Comprehensive Global Strategic Partnership, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said. The US Vice President will travel to Jaipur on Tuesday, followed by a visit to Agra on Wednesday to see the Taj Mahal.