Trump tariff hike to hurt India's USD 5 bn engineering goods exports: EEPC
Published: Jun 17, 2025
By TIOLCorplaws News Service
NEW DELHI, JUNE 17, 2025: THE proposed 50% tariff on all foreign steel and aluminium by US President Donald Trump could hurt India’s engineering exports, as these metals and their derivatives account for nearly a quarter of the country’s total engineering goods shipments to the US.
The annual export of steel, aluminium and their derivatives to the US currently stand at around USD 5 billion.
The 25% tariffs imposed by the US on steel imports (as per the proclamation order dated on 18th March 2025) have created a challenging environment for Indian steel exporters.
Although India's direct steel exports to the US are relatively low, the tariffs have led to increased global competition and price pressures. The tariffs have also resulted in a shift in trade flows.
"In case the US goes ahead with its plan and impose a 50% tariff on steel, aluminium and their derivatives, exports of these key items will become costlier leading to a likely dip in shipments," said Mr Pankaj Chadha, Chairman, EEPC India.
Mr Chadha highlighted that the UK through its trade deal with the US recently got exemptions from 25% tariff on steel and aluminium and suggested that India should also ask for the same kind of waiver during the ongoing bilateral trade agreement (BTA) negotiations with the US.
"This is perhaps not the opportune time to introduce such unilateral tariff especially when BTA negotiations are going on. It can make the work of the negotiators tricky. The proposed tariff increase by the Trump administration is likely to impact the engineering exports which are about USD 5 billion under this head," the EEPC India Chairman said.
