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New Delhi: Starting December 10, India and the United States will engage in three days of discussions regarding the initial phase of their anticipated bilateral trade agreement, according to sources.

This meeting is significant as both nations aim to finalize the first segment of the agreement.

"The discussions will commence on December 10 and wrap up on December 12, although this is not a formal negotiation round," one source indicated.

The US delegation will be headed by Rick Switzer, the Deputy United States Trade Representative.

This marks the second visit of US officials since the introduction of a 25% tariff and an additional 25% penalty on Indian imports due to the acquisition of Russian crude oil.

The last visit by US officials occurred on September 16.

On September 22, Indian Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal led a delegation to the US for trade discussions, having also visited Washington in May.

Brendan Lynch, the Assistant US Trade Representative for South and Central Asia, is the chief negotiator for the US, while India is represented by Darpan Jain, Joint Secretary in the Department of Commerce.

These discussions are crucial as Commerce Secretary Rajesh Agrawal recently expressed optimism about reaching a framework trade deal with the US within this year, which would address tariff issues favorably for Indian exporters.

Agrawal acknowledged that while the Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA) will require time, India is actively negotiating with the US to tackle the reciprocal tariff challenges faced by its exporters.

India and the US are currently engaged in two simultaneous negotiations: one focusing on a framework trade deal to resolve tariff issues and the other on a comprehensive trade agreement.

In February, leaders from both countries instructed officials to pursue an agreement.

The goal is to finalize the first phase of the pact by fall 2025, with six negotiation rounds already completed. The agreement aims to significantly increase bilateral trade to USD 500 billion by 2030, up from the current USD 191 billion.

For the fourth consecutive year in 2024-25, the US has been India's largest trading partner, with bilateral trade reaching USD 131.84 billion (including USD 86.5 billion in exports).

The US constitutes approximately 18% of India's total goods exports, 6.22% of its imports, and 10.73% of its overall merchandise trade.

Exporters emphasize the importance of this agreement, especially as India's merchandise exports to the US fell for the second month in a row in October, decreasing by 8.58% to USD 6.3 billion due to the high tariffs imposed by the US.