President Donald Trump said India has made an offer to drop tariffs on U.S. goods, as the Asian nation negotiates a deal to avert higher import taxes.
Speaking Thursday at an event with business leaders in Qatar, Trump said the Indian government has “offered us a deal where basically they are willing to literally charge us no tariff.”
Trump didn’t offer further details of New Delhi’s apparent offer and the Indian government didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
India was one of the first countries to begin trade negotiations with the U.S. following Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to the White House in February, with both sides agreeing to finalize the first phase of a bilateral deal by the fall. India’s trade minister is expected to meet Trump administration officials in the U.S. from May 17-20 for further negotiations.
Trump’s comments came amid growing frustration in New Delhi over the U.S. president’s announcement of a ceasefire between India and Pakistan after four days of fighting and his insistence he used trade as a bargaining chip to secure the truce. Indian officials have denied that trade had featured in the talks with U.S. officials during the military conflict with its South Asian rival.
The U.S. president also said Thursday he spoke with Apple Inc. Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook to discourage him from expanding production in India.
“I said I don’t want you building in India,” Trump said about a conversation he said he had with Cook. He added that he told Cook “India can take care of themselves, they are doing very well.”
As a result of their discussion, Trump said Apple will be “upping their production in the United States.”
Trump’s comments came days after India threatened to impose retaliatory tariffs in response to higher U.S. duties on steel and aluminum, a sign that New Delhi may be adopting a more assertive approach in its trade negotiations with the White House. The trade talks remain on track though, people familiar with the matter have said.
This story was originally featured on Fortune.com
