White House softens India-US trade deal factsheet, removes pulses and adjusts $500 billion purchase language

Washington: The White House revised the fact sheet on the recently announced India-US trade deal, removing pulses from the list of agricultural products and replacing the $500 billion “commitment” in purchases with language stating India’s “intent” to purchase.

These adjustments carry particular weight in the context of India’s agricultural imports, where pulses are a politically and economically sensitive category.

In the previous version of the fact sheet published on February 9, many other products besides legumes were clearly listed. “India will eliminate or reduce tariffs on all US industrial products and a wide range of US food and agricultural products, including dried distillers grains (DDGs), red sorghum, tree nuts, fresh and processed fruits, some legumes, soybean oil, wine and spirits, and additional products,” the statement said.

However, there is no mention of coups in the document. Instead, he describes India’s purchases in more general terms: “India plans to buy more American products and purchase over $500 billion of US energy, information and communications technology, coal and other products.”

Despite the removal of pulses, the rest of the agricultural product references are intact. The latest fact sheet continues to highlight India’s tariff reductions on a range of US food and industrial products, including DDGs, red sorghum, tree nuts, fresh and processed fruits, soybean oil, wine and spirits.

India’s pulses trade in perspective

India’s pulses import bill has increased in recent years, rising by 46% from $3.75 billion in fiscal 2023-24 to $5.48 billion in fiscal 2024-25. Despite this increase, the USA realized only $89.65 million of total imports; This indicates a relatively minor role in the market.

Lentils accounted for 78 million dollars among pulses imported from the USA in the last fiscal year. By comparison, Canada and Australia dominated the supply chain, contributing $466 million and $328 million respectively.

When India’s pulse imports were examined in the 2024-25 fiscal year, pigeon peas ranked first with 1.29 billion dollars, followed by Bengal gram with 1.12 billion dollars, yellow peas with 961 million dollars and lentils with 916 million dollars.

Policy measures continue to impact trade flows. Tur (pigeon pea) and urad are duty-free until March 31, 2026, while yellow peas face a 30 percent import duty since November 1, 2025. Lentils, the main pulses imported from the USA, carry a 10 percent import duty.

These revisions to the fact sheet highlight the delicate balancing act in U.S.-India trade relations, where economic ambitions, political sensitivities, and industry-specific considerations intersect.