Trump warns India of fresh rice tariffs
News Desk :
US President Donald Trump has warned that he may impose new tariffs on agricultural imports, particularly on rice from India, as he unveiled a multi billion dollar aid package for American farmers.
He made the remarks during a White House meeting where he announced $12?billion in “economic assistance” to US farmers, funded by tariff revenues the government collects from trading partners, as per the NDTV.
The Indian outlet said he claimed imports were challenging domestic producers and that tariff leverage would be central to his strategy for reviving US agriculture.
“We’re really taking in trillions of dollars, if you think about it… Countries took advantage of us like nobody’s ever seen,” it quoted him saying.
He described farmers as “an indispensable national asset, part of the backbone of America” and said stabilising the farm economy was essential after what he called inherited inflation and depressed commodity prices.
The broadcaster said India surfaced prominently during a discussion on rice imports, which one Louisiana producer described as devastating for southern growers.
It cited Trump, responding to information that Indian firms owned “the two largest brands” in the US retail rice market: “All right, and we’ll take care of it. That’s great. It’s so easy… Tariffs, again, solves the problem in two minutes.”
He added, “They shouldn’t be dumping… I mean, I heard that, I heard that from others. You can’t do that.”
Trump also suggested possible tariff measures on fertiliser imports from Canada, adding: “A lot of it does come in from Canada, and so we’ll end up putting very severe tariffs on that, if we have to, because that’s the way you want to bolster here. And we can do it here. We can all do that here.”
The NDTV said India-US agricultural trade has grown over the past decade, with India exporting basmati and other rice products, spices, and marine goods, while importing US almonds, cotton, and pulses.
It noted disputes over subsidies, market access, and World Trade Organization (WTO) complaints — particularly involving rice and sugar — have periodically strained bilateral negotiations.