INDIAN agricultural exporters are among the winners from US President Donald Trump’s exemption of dozens of food items from his reciprocal tariffs regime, which some analysts say could help to revive lost demand.
Trump on Friday removed tariffs he had imposed on more than 200 food products as consumer concerns mount over rising US grocery prices.
Unlike EU and Vietnamese suppliers facing 15–20 per cent duties, Indian exporters of tea, coffee, spices and cashew nuts were hit harder after Trump doubled tariffs to as high as 50pc on imports of certain Indian goods, including a punitive 25pc levy from the end of August on India’s Russian oil purchases.
Ajay Sahai, director general of the Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO), says that between $2.5 billion and $3bn of exports will benefit from the tariff exemptions.
“This order opens space for premium, speciality and value-added products,” he said. “Exporters who shift towards higher-value segments will be better protected from price pressures and can tap rising consumer demand.”
Officials involved in trade and farm export policy said the exemptions are also a positive signal for ongoing U.S.–India trade talks and could ease export pressure triggered by this year’s tariff increases.
Exports of Indian goods to the US fell nearly 12pc year on year in September to $5.43bn after tariffs were raised. Indian farm exports, estimated to account for $5.7bn of the country’s $87bn of exports to the US in 2024, were among those hit.
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