At a hearing of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Kapur said that despite trade uncertainty, India-US ties have picked up momentum in areas such as defence.
Trade language can feel like sleight of hand to those who live with its consequences. But it would be a serious mistake to allow ill-informed agitations to dominate the response.
Foreign ownership in SBI, India’s largest lender, and 11 other state-run banks is capped at 20%, a legacy limit aimed at keeping government control over the financial system.
While officials from the two sides have remained in touch, at the highest levels, the ties are stalled over trade & tariffs. Jaishankar will meet a number of US officials too.
One of the steepest tariffs imposed by the Donald Trump-administration continue to deal a heavy blow to India’s textile, handicraft, apparel, gems and leather industries.
India’s competitiveness cannot be defended abroad if it is eroded at home. Short-term measures can provide a cushion, but without reforms, exporters will remain perpetually vulnerable.
Tariffs have been used in the past by countries like Japan and South, to promote or hinder industrialisation. The surprise in Trump’s tariff argument is two-fold.
UCBs accounted for 1.8% of total industry credit in September 2025—down from 2.2% five yrs ago—showing that they are losing ground to faster PSU banks.
This is the game every nation is now learning to play. Some are finding new allies or seeing value among nations where they’d seen marginal interest. The starkest example is India & Europe.
COMMENTS