The United States has imposed a 50% tariff on goods imported from India, resulting in major American retailers such as Walmart, Amazon, Target, and Gap suspending their orders from India. Various textile businesses in the country have reported receiving letters and emails from American clients requesting a halt on apparel shipments until further notice.
This decision has put immense pressure on India’s textile industry, particularly for companies that consider the United States their primary market. Major exporters like Welspun Living, Gokaldas Exports, Indo Count, and Trident send 40% to 70% of their total exports to the U.S., causing concerns about significant disruptions to their operations.
Experts suggest that this new tariff policy could increase export costs by 30% to 35%. Consequently, orders destined for the U.S. may drop by 40% to 50%. This could result in losses for Indian businesses ranging from $4 to $5 billion, which is approximately 33,000 to 41,000 crore rupees.
The rationale behind the tariff stems from an executive order signed by U.S. President Donald Trump. The tariff will be implemented in two phases: 25% effective immediately from Thursday, with the remaining 25% set to take effect at the end of August. Trump has accused India of indirectly or directly importing oil from Russia, which he claims justifies this punitive measure.
U.S.-Russia relations are currently at a low point, with Trump stating multiple times that “Putin’s mind is not in the right place,” referring to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s contradictions between his public statements and actions. Following conflicts with Ukraine, Trump commenced imposing tariffs on Russia’s allied nations due to the deteriorating relations.
Trump’s executive order stated that imposing additional tariffs on countries that import oil from Russia is deemed “appropriate and necessary.” In response, India’s Ministry of External Affairs expressed strong disapproval, calling the U.S. decision unfair, illogical, and imprudent, emphasizing that India’s oil imports from Russia were conducted purely based on market conditions to ensure fuel security for 1.4 billion citizens.
The Indian government contended that many Western nations shifted their oil import sources after the onset of the Ukraine conflict, while the U.S. had previously encouraged India to procure oil from Russia to stabilize the global fuel market. Now, however, America has opted to impose new tariffs specifically targeting India.
The Ministry also highlighted that countries that are now blaming India were themselves conducting significant business with Russia. The European Union, for instance, conducted trade amounting to 67.5 billion euros with Russia in 2024, alongside significant service transactions valued at 17.2 billion euros in 2023. This year, imports of liquefied natural gas from Europe have also reached record levels, totaling 16.5 million tons.
The Ministry compared India’s trade volume with Russia to that of other countries, claiming that those countries exceed India significantly in trade with Russia. Thus, targeting India alone appears biased.
India presently ranks sixth globally in textile and apparel exports. Still, due to the new U.S. tariff, Indian export markets could shift to countries like Bangladesh or Vietnam, which are subject to only a 20% tariff, compared to India’s 50%.
In light of this situation, the Indian textile sector is urgently calling for government intervention. The industry contends that while they may tolerate some losses for national interest, the government must act swiftly through diplomatic channels for long-term security. So far, no response has been issued from Delhi regarding these developments.
Original Source: https://assam.nenow.in/major-us-retailers-including-walmart-and-amazon-halts-indian-orders-after-trumps-50-percent-tariff-imposition/
Category: অসম,আন্ত: ৰাষ্ট্ৰীয়,উত্তৰ-পূব,দেশ,বাণিজ্য,শীর্ষ সংবাদ
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Publish Date: 2025-08-08 13:20:00
