India scrambling to minimize damage from Trump’s tariffs – Bloomberg

An unnamed Indian official told the outlet that Trump’s tariff decision caught India by surprise. According to the Bloomberg source, Trump’s speech — in which he called the Indian economy "dead," described the trade barriers as "obnoxious," and said that India doesn’t care about the situation of Ukrainians — was quite unusual and resembled a verbal slap.

The official clarified that Indian bureaucrats do not have a standard response to such "public assaults."

The Indian government is preparing for a possible increase in US tariffs and is seeking ways to reduce economic losses. The Ministry of Commerce is discussing how to support exporters, especially in the jewelry, textile, and precious stones sectors.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is urging people to buy Indian products to compensate for the drop in foreign demand. The authorities are also relying on behind-the-scenes negotiations to ease tensions.

In Delhi, they are considering accelerating the launch of an export support program, which was allocated 22.5 billion rupees (about 256 million US dollars) in February. According to Bloomberg, this amount might be increased to help companies that are losing out to competitors benefiting from lower tariffs—at levels of 15-20%.

According to Bloomberg, since the beginning of the year, India imports approximately 1.7 million barrels of Russian oil per day — all of which arrives by sea. For comparison, China receives about 2 million barrels, including both sea and pipeline deliveries.

Trump's threats

Yesterday, August 4, US President Donald Trump announced that he would significantly raise tariffs against India because it continues to trade with Russia despite its aggression against Ukraine.

Today, August 5, Trump clarified that he will substantially increase duties on India within the next 24 hours.