'Another deal is coming, maybe': Donald Trump hints at trade agreement with India as August 1 deadline looms

US President Donald Trump on Wednesday hinted at a possible trade deal with India, while discussing his intention to "live by the letter" with Japan—which was hit with a 25 per cent tariff.

"Another deal is coming", he had said, referring to India, but then added a "maybe", as per a Reuters report.

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According to Trump, the proposed deal could open up the Indian market more for American companies, as would be the case with the US-Indonesia trade pact.

"We have full access to Indonesia", he said to reporters on Tuesday, adding that the deal with India would be "along the same line".

“Indonesia was great. He (Prabowo Subianto) is a great president and we made a terrific deal where they opened up the entire country to trade with the United States. We weren’t allowed to go in and trade (before). I think something similar will happen, I would say, with India,” he explained.

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This comes amid the latest round of trade talks, for which a delegation from India is currently in the US.

Earlier this month, commerce minister Piyush Goyal had said that India would not enter into any trade agreement based on deadlines, and would accept the interim trade deal with the US only when it is fully finalised, properly concluded, and in the national interest, as per a PTI report.

He had been referring to the August 1 deadline imposed by the US, after which the tariffs described in the letters sent out to 14 nations would come into effect. India has so far avoided getting a tariff letter.

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This deadline is itself an extension of the 90-day tariff pause period, which was originally to end on July 9. However, he clarified that no extensions would be made this time.

Although India's negotiations have so far been aimed at holding the tariff below 20 per cent, its position within the BRICS—which Trump had criticised, due to his claims that the bloc presented a threat of weakening the dollar (de-dollarisation)—as well as its dealings with Russia (primarily the purchase of crude oil), present significant challenges.

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On July 7, Trump had imposed an additional 10 per cent tariff on BRICS nations aligning themselves with the "anti-American" policies of the bloc.

On Monday, Trump had also imposed "biting" 100 per cent secondary tariffs on nations doing business with Russia, such as India, China, and Brazil—a threat that NATO chief Mark Rutte has since echoed.

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