The imposition of a 25% duty on imports from India, as well as a potential further 25% duty on the world's largest democracy, may be harmful to the United States and its people, according to an SBI Research report that was published on Friday.
The document reinforced that India, while protecting its sovereignty, needs to be dedicated to protecting its farmers from possible exploitative actions by some international corporations.
These actors, it added, would attempt to capture a sizeable chunk of the lucrative Indian market without investing in long-term infrastructure development, building the agricultural value chain, financing, or engaging in welfare programs that improve the 'Ease of Living' of the nation's farming community.
One of India's greatest success stories, the report noted, has been overtaking global rivals in production of milk between 2015 and 2024.
As far back as 2015, India had produced around 155.5 million tonnes of milk, only a whisker above the European Union's 154.6 million tonnes and many stages ahead of the United States' 94.6 million tonnes. In 2024, India's production had increased by 36% to 211.7 million tonnes, the EU (UK included) to 165.9 million tonnes and the US to 102.5 million tonnes.
India's contribution to the international market for drugs was also highlighted. India is an important component in providing cheap, high-quality, and necessary drugs across the globe — particularly for cancer treatment, antibiotics, and chronic disease therapy.
In the generic drug industry, India provides almost 35 per cent of the pharma requirements of America. If US relocates manufacturing and API manufacturing to other nations or to its own facilities, it would take least 3-5 years for significant capacity," the report said.
With US per capita health expenditure at an average of $15,000 a year, the Indian generics' 35% market share implies that any fresh tariffs would hit American consumers hard.
"Tariff on India pharma exports harms the US goal of shrinking general government and contradicts the goals of DOGE.". The US national healthcare spending is 17.6 per cent of the GDP and government-subsidized Medicare and Medicaid contribute 36 per cent to the overall expenditure," the report further added. It cautioned that increased prices for affordable drugs would raise Medicare and Medicaid spending, along with private individuals' out-of-pocket costs.
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