US Launches Probe on Post Modi Trade and Investment Regime

TF, Local Content, Computer Import Rules may Invite Retaliation

For the second time since last year, the US International Trade Commission (USITC) - an independent, non-partisan, fact-finding federal agency - has started an investigation into India’s trade and investment policies.

In 2013, the committees (House Committee on Ways and Means and the Senate Committee on Finance) had asked USITC to investigate Indian policies that allegedly restrict US trade and investment. The USITC will submit its report on that on December 15 this year.

The latest probe, according to a USITC statement on October 28, is to find out whether there are significant changes since mid-2014 by the new government to the country’s trade and investment policies. The investigation was requested jointly by the two committees in a letter received on September 25. The USITC expects to deliver the report to the committees by September 24 next year, the statement said.

USITC makes no recommendations on policy or other matters in its general fact-finding reports. Such reports are subsequently released to the public unless they are classified for national security reasons.

In the request letter for the new investigation, the committees stated: “Given the recent national elections in India and the formation of a new BJP-led government, and our interest in receiving the most comprehensive and up-to-date information possible, we now request that the commission conduct a second investigation concerning India’s industrial policies that discriminate against US trade and investment since the first ITC investigation.”

The USITC will hold a public hearing in connection with this investigation on April 7, 2015, it said, adding that requests to appear at the hearing should be filed by March 24, 2015.