Is India really the ‘Tariff King’? Not really, says a new report

Is India really a very big abuser of trade ties with the US and levies high import tariffs on products from there?.

A new report by economic think tank Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI) says this is incorrect, pointing out that several countries impose high tariffs on various products to protect their domestic industry...

While India needs serious tariff reforms, the label of Tariff King does not hold up when compared to the tariff practices of the USA and other major economies, said the report, which has analysed import duties levied by India and the US..

India has already removed tariffs on most imports from its FTA partners like ASEAN, Japan, and South Korea, showing its openness to free trade..

The real issue lies in Trumps focus on individual high tariffs rather than average or trade-weighted tariffs, which offer a more accurate representation of a countrys trade policy, it said, pointing out that while Indias average tariff rate of 17% is higher than the U.S.s 3.3%, it is comparable to other major economies like South Korea (13.4%) and China (7.5%)..

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