“Textile goods from 3% tariff pre-Trump is higher than 18% tariff post the deal, as per the logic of India’s Commerce Minister. We were told to clap for this genius deal,” Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Priyanka Chaturvedi alleged in a post on X.
Also read: Bangladesh secures reduced 19% US tariff, exemption for some apparel made with US material; slightly higher than India
She added that the US has now signed a trade deal with Bangladesh in which it has committed to establishing a mechanism for textile and apparel goods using US cotton or man-made fibre from Bangladesh at zero reciprocal tariff in the US market. “India’s Commerce Minister will now tell us the benefit Indian textile exporters will get with 18% tariff over Bangladesh’s 0%,” she wrote.
Putting the comment in context, the Maharashtra-based politician alleged that India imports US cotton worth $200 million while Bangladesh imports $250 million.
US-Bangladesh deal
Under the latest trade deal with US, Bangladesh has secured a reduced 19 per cent tariff that would exempt some textiles and garments manufactured with US materials, interim government chief Muhammad Yunus said.
Announcing the trade agreement, Yunus said that Washington had “committed to establishing a mechanism for certain textile and apparel goods from Bangladesh using US-produced cotton and man-made fibre to receive zero reciprocal tariff in (the) US market”.Commerce Secretary Mahbubur Rahman said that the agreement was signed in Washington by Commerce Adviser Sheikh Bashir Uddin and US Trade Representative (USTR) Jamieson Greer.
Commerce ministry officials said apart from cotton, the deal includes provisions for importing US wheat, soybean, and LNG, refraining from imposing tariffs on e-commerce, complying with US-mandated intellectual property rights standards, and supporting US proposals for reforming the World Trade Organisation (WTO).
As per data from Bangladesh’s Export Promotion Bureau (EPB), the US remains Bangladesh’s largest export market.
The development comes as Bangladesh heads for the general election on February 12 to choose new leadership and bring an end to the 18-month Yunus-led interim regime, which took charge after the fall of Sheikh Hasina’s Awami League government following a violent student-led protest dubbed the July Uprising.
