October 19, 2025

New Delhi was buzzing as Union Minister of Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal stepped up to speak at a lively press conference about the GST Bachat Utsav (GST Saving Festival). Joining him were two other ministers and Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman. When asked about the trade talks with the US, Goyal said, “Talks are going on in a cordial atmosphere.” However, he carefully avoided giving any exact timeline for when the ‘good news’ about a bilateral trade agreement might arrive. What he did stress was that "no agreement can be made until we take care of the interests of India‘s farmers, fishermen and MSME sector." The Indian team, led by Commerce Secretary Rajesh Agrawal, recently traveled to Washington to meet their US counterparts. Earlier in February, leaders from both countries gave the green light to negotiate a Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA), aiming to finish the first round by fall 2025, around October-November. So far, five negotiation rounds have been done. Last month, Goyal himself led the delegation to New York for more talks. Why all this fuss? The India-US relationship has been shaky since the Trump administration slapped a steep 50% tariff on Indian goods, including a 25% extra import duty on Russian crude oil. India called these tariffs "unfair, unjustified and unreasonable." But things could be changing. Recent phone chats between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and then US President Donald Trump have brought fresh hope for a positive twist in these talks. On another vibrant note, Information & Broadcasting Minister Vaishnaw announced some electrifying news on GST's impact. Thanks to the government's GST reforms rolled out last month, electronics consumption is set to jump by a whopping ₹20 lakh crore this year! Data from retail chains show 20-25% more sales compared to last year’s Navaratri, with some items like 85-inch TVs completely selling out. Vaishnaw said, “The increase in demand for electronics goods is directly impacting electronics manufacturing. Electronics manufacturing is now growing at a double-digit CAGR. It is very likely that the consumption will increase more than 10 per cent this year, which means there is a high possibility of Rs 20 lakh crore extra consumption compared to last year.” These exciting developments in trade and GST reforms promise a thrilling ride for India's economy in 2025.

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Tags: Piyush goyal, India-us trade talks, Bilateral trade agreement, Gst reforms, Electronics consumption,