--- title: "India-US trade talks hit plateau, says Finance Minister Sitharaman" publication: "MediaBias News" url: "https://mediabias.news/business/india-us-trade-talks-hit-plateau-says-finance-minister-sitharaman" api: "https://mediabias.news/api/v1/stories/india-us-trade-talks-hit-plateau-says-finance-minister-sitharaman" markdown: "https://mediabias.news/business/india-us-trade-talks-hit-plateau-says-finance-minister-sitharaman.md" audio: "https://mediabias.news/api/audio/india-us-trade-talks-hit-plateau-says-finance-minister-sitharaman" category: "Business & Economy" area: "United States" published: "2026-10-05T06:05:16.824Z" source_reported: "2026-10-05T05:57:04.000Z" updated: "2026-10-05T06:05:16.824Z" trust_score: 68 critic_score: 95 hype_score: 25 assessment_type: "coverage-and-source-reporting-analysis" fact_check_status: "not-performed" coverage_measured: "2026-10-05T06:00:23.667026+00:00" --- # India-US trade talks hit plateau, says Finance Minister Sitharaman *Nirmala Sitharaman indicated further concessions would be difficult as the trade balance favours India.* **Scores for the source reporting** (0-100, assessing the original journalism this article was written from, not this write-up): - Trust 68 of 100, higher is better. Trust 68: multiple named officials and specific percentages are cited, with dates and locations, but no documents. - Craft 95 of 100, higher is better. Critic 95: explains significance, includes quotes, specific data, future outlook, and is clearly written. - Hype 25 of 100, lower is better. Hype 25: language is straightforward with mild emphasis, no sensationalism or clickbait. Scored by MediaBias News; method at https://mediabias.news/methodology. **The short version** - India-US trade negotiations have reached a plateau, according to Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman. - Sitharaman stated that further concessions in the trade talks would be very difficult for both sides. - The bilateral trade balance currently favours India, a point the US seeks to reduce, Sitharaman noted. - The finance minister made these remarks on Monday at the Munich Leaders Meeting. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced on Monday that trade negotiations between India and the United States have reached a plateau. She indicated that moving beyond this point with further concessions would be "very, very difficult" for both nations. Sitharaman made these statements at the Munich Leaders Meeting. She also highlighted that the current bilateral trade balance favours India, a situation the US aims to rectify. ## Disagreement on negotiation status The Hindu reported that the proposed Indo-U.S. trade agreement "has been a hard and very rigorously negotiated agreement," and that negotiations are still ongoing. Hindustan Times also stated that the agreement was still being "very rigorously negotiated" and that negotiations are still ongoing. ## What the coverage left out None of the right-rated reports mention the details of India opening up its tariff lines and trade value, nor do they include Sitharaman's comparison of the India-US trade imbalance with that of India-China, as reported by The Hindu. The centre-rated reports do not mention the India-EU trade deal or the specific percentages of tariff lines and trade value opened by India and the EU, which were detailed in The Hindu's report. ## Who covered it Shares of the 8 covering outlets with a published leaning rating: - Left: 13% (1) - Centre: 37% (3) - Right: 50% (4) 4 of 12 covering outlets carried no usable leaning rating and were excluded from those percentages. Coverage measured 2026-10-05T06:00:23.667026+00:00. **Coverage watch:** developing. Checked 1 time; 0 checks found a material change. Most recently checked 2026-10-05T06:15:17.193Z. ## How the sides framed it ### Left - The Hindu's report led with Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman hailing the India-EU trade deal at the Munich Leaders Meeting. It noted that India has opened 92.5% of its tariff lines and 97% of trade value in that deal, while the EU opened 99% of value and possibly 97% of tariff lines. The report stated that the proposed Indo-U.S. trade agreement "has been a hard and very rigorously negotiated agreement" and that negotiations are still ongoing. It quoted Sitharaman saying that both sides have reached a plateau beyond which giving or taking might be very difficult, and that the trade balance is in India’s favour. The report also included Sitharaman's comments comparing the US desire to reduce trade imbalance with India's view on the imbalance with China. ### Centre - Hindustan Times' report led with Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman stating that India-US trade talks reached a plateau, with "Give or take beyond this very difficult." The report noted Sitharaman's statement that negotiations are still ongoing, but that both sides have reached a plateau beyond which giving or taking might be very difficult. It also mentioned that the trade balance is very much in India's favour and that the US would naturally want to reduce this imbalance. The report included Sitharaman's comments about "no Lindsay Graham bill in Europe" and mentioned a meeting between Union minister Piyush Goyal and US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer. It also referenced Prime Minister Narendra Modi's past conversations with US President Donald Trump regarding bilateral ties. ### Right - The Hindu Business Line, CNBC-TV18, Moneycontrol, and India Today all led with the statement that India and the US have reached a plateau in trade talks, with further concessions being difficult. India Today's headline stated, "Very very difficult to give more: FM Sitharaman says India-US trade talks hit plateau." These reports focused on Sitharaman's assertion that negotiations are continuing but may have hit a point where further movement is difficult. They also mentioned the US seeking other ways to reduce the trade imbalance. Moneycontrol noted that the agreement remains unfinished with potentially limited scope for further concessions. **Provisional coverage gap:** left. The watch is not closed, so this is not yet a settled blindspot finding. ## Factuality profile of the covering outlets These are published factuality ratings of the outlets, not a verdict on whether this story or its claims are true. - mixed: 4 - high: 2 - unknown: 4 - veryHigh: 2 ## Verification scope This page compares coverage and scores the source reporting. It is not a ClaimReview verdict on whether the underlying event or claim is true. ## Original reporting this was written from - [Orissa POST](https://orissapost.com/india-us-trade-deal-talks-remain-difficult-may-have-hit-plateau-fm-sitharaman) — India-US trade deal talks remain difficult, may have hit plateau: FM Sitharaman - OrissaPOST - [Reuters](https://reuters.com/world/india/india-us-have-reached-plateau-trade-talks-indian-finance-minister-says-2026-10-05) — India, US have reached a plateau in trade talks, Indian finance ... - [Hindustan Times](https://hindustantimes.com/india-news/india-us-trade-talks-reached-a-plateau-says-sitharaman-give-or-take-beyond-this-very-difficult-101791177215458.html) — India-US trade talks reached a ‘plateau’, says Sitharaman: ‘Give or take beyond this very difficult' - [WTVB](https://wtvbam.com/2026/10/05/india-us-have-reached-a-plateau-in-trade-talks-indian-finance-minister-says) — India, US have reached a plateau in trade talks, Indian finance minister says - [The Hindu Business Line](https://thehindubusinessline.com/news/india-us-have-reached-a-plateau-in-trade-talks-indian-finance-minister-says/article71545852.ece) — India, US have reached a plateau in trade talks, Indian finance minister says - [Indian Abroad News - We Bring You Home](https://indianabroad.news/us-trade-talks-may-have-reached-plateau-trade-balance-favoured-india-fm-sitharaman) — US trade talks may have reached plateau, trade balance favoured India: FM Sitharaman - [The Hindu](https://thehindu.com/business/Economy/fm-sitharaman-hails-india-eu-trade-deal-at-munich-leaders-meeting/article71545912.ece) — FM Sitharaman hails India-EU trade deal at Munich Leaders Meeting - [CNBC-TV18](https://cnbctv18.com/economy/india-us-trade-deal-negotiations-nirmala-sitharaman-20004452.htm) — India-US trade deal talks have reached a plateau, says FM Nirmala Sitharaman - [BizToc](https://biztoc.com/x/68dc9b240006c9b3) — India says trade talks with US hit a 'plateau' - [Moneycontrol](https://moneycontrol.com/news/business/india-us-trade-talks-may-have-reached-plateau-further-concessions-difficult-nirmala-sitharaman-14044525.html) — India-US trade talks may have reached ‘plateau’, further concessions difficult: Nirmala Sitharaman - [India Today](https://indiatoday.in/business/story/india-us-trade-talks-plateau-nirmala-sitharaman-says-more-concessions-difficult-3009604-2026-10-05) — Very very difficult to give more: FM Sitharaman says India-US trade talks hit plateau - [Social News XYZ](https://socialnews.xyz/2026/10/05/us-trade-talks-may-have-reached-plateau-trade-balance-favoured-india-fm-sitharaman) — US trade talks may have reached plateau, trade balance favoured India: FM Sitharaman ## Questions **What did India's Finance Minister say about India-US trade talks?** Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman stated that trade negotiations between India and the United States have reached a plateau. She indicated that making further concessions would be very difficult for both sides, and noted that the current trade balance favours India. **When and where did Nirmala Sitharaman make these remarks?** Nirmala Sitharaman made these remarks on Monday at the Munich Leaders Meeting. The specific date mentioned in the reports is October 5, 2026. **What is the current trade balance between India and the US?** According to Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, the bilateral trade balance currently favours India. She noted that the US seeks to reduce this imbalance. --- MediaBias News — https://mediabias.news. Reproduced from https://mediabias.news/business/india-us-trade-talks-hit-plateau-says-finance-minister-sitharaman. Please cite as: MediaBias News, "India-US trade talks hit plateau, says Finance Minister Sitharaman", https://mediabias.news/business/india-us-trade-talks-hit-plateau-says-finance-minister-sitharaman