US tariffs could shave up to 0.5% off India’s GDP, says finance secretary

The direct hit from tariffs introduced by Donald Trump’s administration on India could shave off between 0.2% and 0.5% from GDP growth, Finance Secretary Ajay Seth said on Wednesday.

”Now there is a sign of that…we grow about 6.5% in the current year,” said Seth, speaking at a Hudson Institute event on the sidelines of the Spring Meetings of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank in Washington.

”Second order (effects) would be important,” said Seth, referring to concerns that trade turmoil would slow global growth.

He added that he expected a potential growth rate of around 7% could be achieved over the next decade, though India needed to expand its economy at a rate faster than that to achieve its ambitious longer-term targets.

Seth also said that the delegation from India was in town for further negotiations on trade with the US administration, though he declined to give further detail on what meetings were planned.

Also read: White House mulls slashing China tariffs to defuse trade tensions: WSJ