India’s official response to the United States’ sweeping new reciprocal tariff regime is measured to the point of opacity. While President Donald Trump’s Executive Order imposes a 10% universal tariff from April 5 and an additional 27% surcharge on Indian goods from April 9, the Indian government’s press note reads more like a diplomatic placeholder than a policy roadmap.The White House has branded April 5 as Liberation Day, marking the moment the US “freed itself” from what it sees as a rigged system of lower tariffs and unequal trade. The 10% universal tariff now applies to all trading partners. India, among those singled out for an additional surcharge, faces a sharp escalation in export duties—nearly quadrupling rates on some product lines. Trump further singled out India calling New Delhi as “very very tough” during the briefing on the reciprocal tariffs.
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