March 05, 2019 (MLN): U.S. President Donald Trump said on Monday he intends to end India’s preferential trade treatment under a program that allows $5.6 billion worth of Indian exports to enter the United States duty free.
“I am providing notice of my intent to terminate the designation of India as a beneficiary developing country under the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) program,” Trump said in a letter to congressional leaders.
“I am taking this step because, after intensive engagement between the United States and the Government of India, I have determined that India has not assured the United States that it will provide equitable and reasonable access to the markets of India,” Trump said.
However, U.S.A will be reviewing India’s eligibility for the GSP program in April.
Previously, India was the largest beneficiary of the program in 2017 as it apparently shipped $5.7 billion worth of products to the U.S that year.
US President Donald Trump also called for an end to preferential tariff given to Turkey, as he believed that Turkey is no longer a “developing country based on its level of economic development.”
