Obama’s trade and tax wish list may impact India

While India found no mention in U.S. President Barack Obama’s annual State of the Union (SOTU) address, certain policy proposals that he made to both houses of Congress on Tuesday evening, including increased trade authority and a tax clampdown on businesses, could have a ripple effect on economic ties with economic partner-nations.

On the subject of international trade deals, which in all likelihood concerned the Trans-Pacific Partnership and the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership, Mr. Obama said that although past trade deals had not lived up to the “hype,” this is the reason Washington had “gone after countries that break the rules at our expense.”

To facilitate this crackdown in the trade arena, Mr. Obama said, he was “asking both parties to give me trade promotion authority to protect American workers, with strong new trade deals from Asia to Europe that aren’t just free, but fair.”

His remarks on this count acquire significance in the light of his visit to India this weekend, where his engagement with the administration of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi hinges principally on increasing business and economic opportunities.

Ahead of the President’s historic trip to join India’s Republic Day celebration as Chief Guest, officials here have made clear that certain obstacles remain in this area, including “philosophical” differences that India appeared to have with the U.S. regarding intellectual property rights protection, and protectionist trends implied by India’s local content requirements, relevant to sectors such as pharmaceuticals, solar panels, digital media and telecommunications.