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The White House has issued a revised version of its fact sheet on the interim trade arrangement with India, removing any mention of “pulses” from the catalogue of American exports on which tariffs were said to be scrapped or lowered, and adjusting its phrasing around India’s projected procurement of US products.

Earlier in the week, Washington had circulated a document titled 'The United States and India Announce Historic Trade Deal (Interim Agreement)', released shortly after the two countries jointly outlined a framework governing reciprocal and mutually advantageous commercial engagement. That original note summarised what it described as the principal provisions of the understanding.

In its first iteration, the fact sheet drew attention to several headline features, asserting that India would do away with or reduce duties on the full spectrum of US industrial merchandise alongside an extensive assortment of American food and farm-linked commodities. These included dried distillers’ grains, red sorghum, various tree nuts, both fresh and processed fruit, “certain pulses”, soybean oil, wine and spirits, among other categories.

It also indicated that New Delhi had pledged to step up purchases of US-origin goods, suggesting that acquisitions worth more than USD 500 billion would be made across sectors such as energy, information and communication technology, agriculture, coal, and related supplies.

However, the updated version circulated on Tuesday omitted the earlier reference to pulses entirely. In addition, it replaced the earlier formulation describing India as having “committed” to expanded procurement with more measured language stating that India “intends” to increase its buying.

The amended document now states: 'India will eliminate or reduce tariffs on all US industrial goods and a wide range of US food and agricultural products, including dried distillers’ grains (DDGs), red sorghum, tree nuts, fresh and processed fruit, soybean oil, wine and spirits, and additional products.

'India intends to buy more American products and purchase over $500 billion of US energy, information and communication technology, coal, and other products.'

Notably, the joint statement issued last week outlining the parameters of the trade understanding had contained no reference to pulses among the goods subject to tariff easing for US exports. That statement likewise employed more cautious phrasing, noting that 'India intends to purchase $500 billion of US energy products, aircraft and aircraft parts, precious metals, technology products, and coking coal over the next five years.'

Taken together, the revisions underscore the evolving language surrounding the interim arrangement, suggesting an effort to align subsequent documentation more closely with the formulations adopted in the bilateral statement released at the time of the agreement’s announcement.

With PTI inputs