US agrees to grant market access to India's steel & aluminium products

New Delhi: The Ministry of Commerce and Industry said yesterday that the United States has agreed to grant market access to India's steel and aluminium products. As per the agreement, the US Department of Commerce will clear 70 per cent of steel and 80 per cent of aluminium applications for products originating in India. The decision was taken during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's ongoing visit to the United States.

As per the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, it would provide significant impetus to raise India's Steel and Aluminium exports by about 35 per cent. The  US has restricted market access since the 14th of June 2018 under the exclusion process of Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act



1962.  

Under this additional duties of 25 per cent and 10 per cent were levied on steel and aluminium products. Meanwhile, India has agreed to remove additional duties like retaliatory tariffs on certain products. It said the prevailing basic import duty on these products applicable to all imports will continue.

Speaking about the development, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said it is a historic decision that has been taken under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Joe Biden. 

Mr Goyal said that India and the US have actively engaged in discussions during the last two years to terminate these six outstanding disputes at the WTO.