Trump: India has offered U.S. a trade deal with zero tariffs

May 15 (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump said connected Thursday that India had offered a commercialized woody that projected "no tariffs" for American goods, portion expressing his dissatisfaction with Apple's (AAPL.O) plans to put successful India.

New Delhi is seeking to clinch a commercialized woody with the U.S. wrong the 90-day intermission announced by Trump connected April 9 connected tariff hikes for large trading partners.

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"It is precise hard to merchantability successful India, and they are offering america a woody wherever fundamentally they are consenting to virtually complaint america nary tariffs," Trump said successful a gathering with executives successful the Qatari superior Doha.

Reuters has reported that New Delhi has offered to reduce duties to zero connected 60% of tariff lines successful a archetypal signifier of the woody nether dialog with Washington, portion offering preferential entree to astir 90% of the merchandise India imports from the U.S.

India's equity benchmarks jumped to a seven-month precocious aft Trump's remark connected the woody with India.

The Indian commercialized ministry did not reply to a message seeking comments connected the projected deal.

Trump successful Doha said helium had confronted Apple's CEO Tim Cook astir shifting accumulation to India, arsenic the American institution moves to marque astir of its iPhones sold successful the United States astatine factories successful India by the extremity of 2026, and is speeding up those plans to navigate perchance higher tariffs successful China.

"Tim, we treated you precise good, we enactment up with each the plants you built successful China for years ... we are not funny successful you gathering successful India, India tin instrumentality attraction of themselves, they are doing precise well, we privation you to physique here", Trump recalled himself telling Cook, who was not successful the Doha meeting.

India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi has successful caller years promoted India arsenic a smartphone manufacturing hub and Apple's suppliers person ramped up accumulation successful the country.

In March, Apple's main India suppliers Foxconn and Tata shipped astir $2 cardinal worthy of iPhones to the U.S., an all-time high, to bypass Trump's impending tariffs.

The United States is India's largest trading partner, with bilateral commercialized totalling immoderate $129 cardinal successful 2024. The commercialized equilibrium is presently successful favour of India, which runs a $45.7 cardinal surplus with the U.S.

India's commercialized curate Piyush Goyal volition pb a commercialized delegation to the United States starting May 16 to beforehand commercialized negotiations, 2 authorities officials told Reuters connected Tuesday.

India has immoderate of the world's highest tariffs connected imports, and Trump has antecedently called India a "tariff abuser".

Reporting by Nayera Abdallah and Ahmed Elimam, Writing by Ahmed Elimam; Editing by Alex Richardson, Aidan Lewis

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