A day earlier than imposing reciprocal tariffs, the US raised a variety of considerations over India’s commerce practices that hurt American pursuits. These vary from “localised web shutdowns that disrupt industrial operations” to “an Indian regulation requiring that dairy merchandise meant for meals have to be derived from animals that haven’t consumed feed containing blood meal”.
Hinting at attainable US calls for in ongoing commerce negotiations with India, the US Commerce Consultant’s (USTR’s) new report on international commerce obstacles protecting 29 main commerce companions has flagged India’s rules on the import of milk, pork, and fish merchandise, which it mentioned “require genetically modified-free certificates with out offering a scientific or risk-based justification”.
Indicating that Washington fears one other China within the making, the report acknowledged that the US has positioned India on the ‘Precedence Watch Checklist’ because of inconsistent progress on mental property (IP) considerations. It highlighted the dearth of particular legal guidelines for “commerce secret safety” as a big difficulty, together with lengthy ready durations for patent grants.
The US has additionally expressed considerations over India’s worth caps on coronary stents and knee implants, stating that these controls haven’t saved tempo with inflation and don’t account for manufacturing prices or innovation, probably discouraging US firms from serving the Indian market.
US calls for on dairy, agriculture and GM merchandise
The report reiterated a long-standing American concern over India’s agricultural assist programmes, which, in line with the US, distort markets. Nevertheless, Indian officers have argued that US subsidies for farmers are a lot increased in comparison with what India offers.
The US additionally raised considerations about India’s utility of quantitative restrictions on imports of assorted pulses to handle home oversupply, noting the opaque and unpredictable nature of those restrictions. “Restrictions on boric acid imports, together with arbitrary amount approvals and necessities favouring home producers, are additionally a priority,” the report mentioned.
“India requires that dairy merchandise meant for meals be derived from animals that haven’t consumed feed containing inner organs, blood meal, or tissues of ruminant or porcine origin, and that exporting international locations certify to those situations, which lack a discernible animal well being or human well being justification,” the report mentioned. The report additionally highlighted lengthy standing variations between Washington and New Delhi over genetically modified (GM) merchandise exported by the US.
Story continues under this advert
“The Meals Security and Requirements Act of 2006 contains particular provisions for regulating meals merchandise derived from genetically engineered (GE) merchandise; nevertheless, as of 31 December 2024, FSSAI was nonetheless within the course of of building its rules. India’s biotechnology approval processes are sluggish, opaque, and topic to political influences, and don’t seem to keep in mind science-based approval processes for GE merchandise in exporting international locations,” the report mentioned.
Knowledge localisation and digital commerce obstacles
The US has expressed considerations about knowledge localisation necessities for fee service suppliers and banks. “In 2018, the Reserve Financial institution of India (RBI) carried out a requirement that every one fee service suppliers retailer all data associated to digital funds by Indian residents on servers situated in India. RBI introduced this rule with out advance discover or enter from stakeholders. In 2019, RBI acknowledged that the requirement to retailer funds knowledge regionally additionally utilized to banks working in India. Overseas companies assert that the information storage requirement hampers the flexibility of service suppliers to detect fraud and make sure the safety of their international networks,” the report mentioned.
The Indian Categorical reported on Friday that considerations over India’s strict knowledge localisation norms have been raised by the US through the four-day negotiations that ended on Saturday.
“The US continues to encourage India to undertake an ‘open skies’ satellite tv for pc coverage to permit shoppers the pliability to pick out the satellite tv for pc capability supplier that most accurately fits their enterprise necessities and to advertise market entry for international satellite tv for pc service suppliers,” the report added. By the way, DOGE chief Elon Musk, a confidant of President Donald Trump, is a promoter of the Starlink satellite tv for pc communication supplier.
Story continues under this advert
Considerations over India’s patent regime
US considerations over India’s patent regime embody copyright piracy, notably on-line, and points with statutory licensing. Within the subject of patents, lengthy ready durations for patent grants, extreme reporting necessities, and considerations concerning patentability standards have been famous. The report added that the US continues to watch restrictions on patent-eligible subject material in Part 3(d) of the Indian Patents Act.
“Considerations additionally exist concerning the safety of undisclosed take a look at knowledge and the dearth of an efficient mechanism for the early decision of pharmaceutical patent disputes. Insufficient IP enforcement, delays in trademark opposition proceedings, and the dearth of particular legal guidelines for commerce secret safety are additionally important considerations,” the report mentioned.