Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick met Thursday with India’s trade minister, a sign the countries remain engaged after a Supreme Court ruling upended President Trump’s tariff playbook.
Mr. Lutnick spoke to Indian Trade Minister Piyush Goyal in New Delhi, as both nations try to keep a recent trade agreement on track.
“Engaged in very fruitful discussions to expand our trade and economic partnership,” Mr. Goyal posted on X.
U.S. Ambassador to India Sergio Gor took part in the meetings.
The Washington Times reached out to the Commerce Department for comment on Mr. Lutnick’s agenda while he is in India.
Earlier this month, Mr. Trump agreed to slash tariffs on Indian goods after Prime Minister Narendra Modi agreed to stop buying Russian oil.
“Out of friendship and respect for Prime Minister Modi and, as per his request, effective immediately, we agreed to a trade deal between the United States and India, whereby the United States will charge a reduced reciprocal tariff, lowering it from 25% to 18%,” Mr. Trump wrote on social media.
The president had relied on the International Emergency Economic Powers Act to impose the tariffs.
But the Supreme Court ruled this month that Mr. Trump usurped Congress’ taxing powers by invoking IEEPA, rendering the nation-by-nation tariffs illegal.
Foreign nations are scrambling to figure out what this means for the deals they negotiated with the U.S.
The Trump administration said it would keep the deals intact as it reconstructs its tariff framework.
Mr. Trump recently issued a new 10% global tariff under Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974. He is working to raise that rate to 15%.
The authority is valid for 150 days unless renewed by Congress.
Tariffs are a duty on foreign goods when they are brought into U.S. markets. Often, an American entity is the importer of record and pays the tariff. It may pass along the cost to consumers.
Businesses that paid tariffs under IEEPA are seeking refunds following the Supreme Court ruling, though litigation around repayment may take months.
• Tom Howell Jr. can be reached at thowell@washingtontimes.com.
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