India Postpones US Trade Deal Signing After Tariff Ruling

India has decided to postpone signing its bilateral trade agreement with the United States until Washington establishes a new global tariff framework, following a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that invalidated reciprocal tariffs imposed under emergency powers. The framework for the deal was announced in early February 2026, with signing originally slated for March, but the court's decision on February 20 disrupted the timeline, according to senior Indian government officials.

The Supreme Court struck down tariffs levied under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, which had formed the basis for the reciprocal measures in the proposed agreement. At the time the framework was finalized on February 7, those tariffs remained in effect, officials noted. "When the deal was being prepared, the Supreme Court judgment had not come. Now with the judgment, those tariffs per se will not exist," a senior commerce ministry official said.

In response, the U.S. issued executive orders imposing a uniform 10 percent tariff on imports from all countries under Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974, related to balance-of-payments provisions. This temporary measure, effective for about five...