Trump has announced that US imports from India will now attract a hefty 25% tariff. It is worrisome (but not unexpected) to see India being bullied by an indicted, albeit elected, felon. The tariff torture will be amplified with an additional subjective mulct (cess, if you will) for our oil imports from Russia. India is an independent nation, not a liegeman state that can be pushed around at will. These hostile measures are a deliberate attack on our sovereignty and economic strength.
I wonder why all those verbose, bleeding-heart nationalists in the government have suddenly lost their voices. The duty will hammer our MSMEs, industries, contract manufacturers, IT firms, service providers, and even our farmers (so much for doubling farmers’ income by 2022). It will lead to a flight of foreign capital, drastically impact exports, and make the unemployment situation worse.
While Japan was slapped with a nominal 15% tariff, Vietnam pays 20% and Indonesia 19%; we came in for special treatment by our supposed benefactor in the White House. What’s even worse is ‘Maun’ Modi’s deafening silence on his ‘good’ friend’s (mis)deeds. Will we only see retaliatory action when Trump raises tariffs to 56% to match the size of a ‘strong’ leader’s chest?
