Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal on Saturday said India cannot implement the proposed trade agreement with the United States until it secures a competitive advantage over competing nations, indicating that tariff-related issues remain the final hurdle in the negotiations.
Responding to an question on US Ambassador to India-designate Sergio Gor's statement that the India-US Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA) is "99 per cent there", Goyal said the framework agreement has already been finalised, but implementation depends on resolving outstanding tariff concerns.
