Soon after Russian President Putin’s visit, former US President Donald Trump has once again hinted at imposing new tariffs on India – this time targeting India’s rice export. Trump says that many countries including India are dumping cheap rice in America, causing huge losses to American farmers. He has indicated that the US administration is considering new tariffs on Agri Products, which may mainly include Fertilizer from Canada and Rice from India. Meanwhile, America has also announced a bail out package of 12 billion dollars for its farmers. The direct impact of this news was visible on Indian Rice Stocks—Shares like LT Foods, GRM Overseas and Sarveshwar Foods fell by 7%. Especially LT Foods, whose 46% revenue comes from the US market, and its Golden Star in the US is America’s No.1 Jasmine Rice Brand. India is the world’s largest rice producer, with a production capacity of 150 million tonnes and a share of 30.3% in global exports. India exported 234,000 tonnes of rice to the US in FY24, worth ₹2,849 crore. The news of this possible tariff is coming at a time when talks on Trade Agreements between India and US are already stuck. Agri products remain the biggest bottleneck between the two countries. New tariffs could make trade talks even more complicated.
