On March 4, President Donald Trump announced that the US intends to terminate India’s designations as a beneficiary developing country under the GSP programme.

WASHINGTON: A group of 25 influential American lawmakers has urged the US Trade Representative not to terminate the GSP programme with
The Generalized System of Preference (GSP) is the largest and oldest US trade preference programme and is designed to promote
On March 4, President Donald Trump announced that the US intends to terminate India’s designations as a beneficiary developing country under the GSP programme.
The 60-day notice period ends on May 3.
On the eve of the end of the notice period, the 25 US lawmakers
The 25 members of the US House of Representatives in a passionate letter urged US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer to continue negotiating a deal that protects and promotes jobs that rely on trade – both imports and exports – with India.
They argued that terminating GSP for India would hurt American companies seeking to expand their exports to India.
“India’s termination from GSP follows its failure to provide the United States with assurances that it will provide equitable and reasonable access to its markets in numerous sectors,” Trump had said in a letter to Congress, providing a notice of his intent to terminate the designation of India as a beneficiary developing country under GSP programme.
“I will continue to assess whether the Government of India
The USTR through a simple notification in
“American companies that rely on duty-free treatment for India
Terminating the GSP for India similarly would hurt, not help, companies seeking to expand their exports to India. Any progress made toward resolving issues over the last year of GSP negotiations seems unlikely to take effect if India is removed from the programme,” the lawmakers said.
It
would be a step back, not forward. Continuing negotiations is the only
way to gain new market access for US exports to India,” said the letter
written by these lawmakers.
Reaching a comprehensive solution that benefits both the US import
and export interests is further complicated by the upcoming elections in
India, they said.
Noting
that the 60-day notice period expires in the middle of Indian elections
that run from mid-April to late-May, the Congressmen said that it will
be up to India’s next government to resolve outstanding issues with the
US, but seating that government and restarting negotiations also
requires time.
“A
decision to terminate GSP in the midst of the elections risks
politicising the issues further, with potentially negative consequences
for broader relations with an important ally,” the Congressmen wrote.
The Congressmen urged Lighthizer not to terminate any GSP benefits
until there is an opportunity to negotiate with India’s next government.
The alternative is higher trade barriers all around, which would hurt American companies and workers that depend on strong two-way trade between the US and India,” they warned.