India not immune to US-China trade tensions, says expert

World
Europe

03:46

Trade tensions have ratcheted up after the Trump administration announced it will impose a 25-percent tariff on another 16 billion US dollars' worth of Chinese goods, with Beijing saying it will respond in kind.

Experts have raised alarm over the consequences the ongoing frictions between the world's two biggest economies will have on global economy. What effects would they specifically have on India?

"In short term, India may benefit from the ongoing US-China trade war," said Senior Political Analyst Ajay Jha, warning that the Indian economy is not insulated from the negative impact of the US-China trade dispute. Jha pointed out that the Indian rupee has already felt the pain with its value taking a hit.

India also has its own trade dispute with the US as it proposed to place duties on American imports after the US slapped tariffs on the country's steel and aluminum exports.

"Indian consumers will suffer. Retaliatory duties imposed by India on imports of 30 items from the US are bound to hit the end consumers."

As the Trump administration targets the two most populous countries in the world, Jha maintained that the global trade war the US president initiated has brought India and China closer.

"Now is the best time for the two Asian giants to boost bilateral trade because they have a lot of potentials."

Jha argued that India can supply China with soybean and cotton. The two countries can also increase technical collaboration, he added.

He noted that China and India will create a united front to fight against Trump's trade policies and that the two will work together to create a better environment for global trade.