Officials of India and US to begin 3-day meet on Feb 23 to finalise legal text for interim trade pact

New Delhi (PTI): A three-day meeting between Indian and American officials to finalise the legal text for an interim trade agreement will begin in the US on February 23, an official said on Friday.

Earlier this month, India and the US released a joint statement to announce that a framework for an interim trade agreement has been finalised.

The joint statement lays down the contours of the deal. Now, the contours of the deal have to be translated into a legal agreement, which will be signed between the two sides. It is expected to be signed in March.

The Indian and the US team will start their three-day meeting from Monday, the official said.

Indian team will be headed by chief negotiator Darpan Jain, who is a joint secretary in the Commerce Ministry.

Under the interim trade pact, both sides would extend duty concessions to each other on a number of goods traded between them.

The US has announced that it will reduce the reciprocal tariffs on Indian goods from 25 per cent to 18 per cent. It has already eliminated the 25 per cent punitive tariffs on India for buying Russian crude oil.