President Donald Trump announced on Monday that he will cut U.S. tariffs on Indian imports to 18% in return for, among other commitments, India’s pledge to halt its purchase of Russian oil.
India has been importing roughly 1.5 million barrels of Russian crude per day, even after the U.S. originally slapped punitive tariffs on Indian goods aimed at discouraging those purchases.
Trump said in a social media post that he spoke with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who agreed to replace Russian oil imports with purchases from Venezuela and the United States—the former providing similar heavy crude suitable for products like diesel and fuel oil.
However, it remains unclear how quickly that shift can occur; Venezuela’s oil infrastructure has suffered from underinvestment and is far from reaching its peak production capacity.
The tariff reduction to 18% is less extensive than some other U.S. trade agreements, reflecting ongoing negotiations. It also isn’t yet clear whether the additional tariff tied specifically to Russian oil purchases will be removed.
Trump also said India agreed to eliminate tariffs on U.S. goods and remove certain non‑tariff barriers, although details on the latter were not specified. India has additionally pledged to boost its purchases of American products across sectors including energy, technology and agriculture, with commitments reportedly valued at around $500 billion.
While India isn’t among the United States’ largest trading partners, changes to tariff levels could still have a significant impact: the U.S. imported $95.5 billion in Indian goods in 2025, and exported $42 billion worth to India last year.