US Trade
India's trade surplus with US narrows in Jan as imports rise 24% on year
This story was originally published at 19:18 IST on 16 February 2026
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--Govt: India Jan imports from US $4.49 bln, up 23.7% on year
--India Jan exports to US $6.60 bln, down 21.8% on year
--India Jan imports from Russia $2.86 bln, down 40.5% on year
--India Jan imports from China $12.23 bln, up 16.7% on year
MUMBAI – India's trade surplus with the US narrowed in January as the two countries announced an interim trade deal, under which Washington lowered tariffs on Indian goods to 18% from 50?rlier.
India exported goods worth $6.60 billion to the US in January, down 22% on year, data released by the commerce ministry Monday showed. Imports from the US rose over 24% on year to $4.49 billion last month. This brought India's trade surplus with the US to $2.1 billion in January, down from $4.8 billion a year ago. India had a trade surplus of $28.53 billion with the US in Apr-Jan, down from $29.88 billion a year ago.
A delegation of Indian officials, led by Chief Negotiator and Commerce Joint Secretary Darpan Jain, will visit Washington next week to finalise the contours of the recently concluded interim trade deal, Commerce Secretary Rajesh Agrawal said Monday. Both sides aim to sign the agreement in March, Agrawal added.
Under the trade deal, the US has committed to reducing reciprocal tariffs on Indian goods to 18% from 25?rlier. Since the conclusion of the deal, the White House has also scrapped the 25% penal tariff levied on India for New Delhi's strategic partnership with Russia. The US had imposed an overall 50% tariff on Indian goods in August.
India's imports from Russia fell by more than 40% on year in January to $2.86 billion, data showed. For Apr-Jan, India's imports from Russia fell 12% to $47.84 billion. India's imports from China rose 17% on year in January to $12.23 billion.
India's overall goods trade deficit widened to $34.68 billion in January from $23.43 billion a year ago. Goods exports were largely unchanged on year at $36.56 billion, while imports jumped nearly 20% on year to $71.24 billion last month. Goods imports in January were the second-highest on record. End
US$1 = INR 90.65
Reported by Shubham Rana
Edited by Saji George Titus
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