Milwaukee, October 1 (Daily Kiran) : A two-day meeting of trade ministers from the world’s major economies has commenced in Milwaukee. Piyush Goyal, India’s Minister of Commerce and Industry, is representing the country at this significant event.
The United States is advocating for coordinated action to address the excessive global steel production and to revise some international trade rules. The meeting is being hosted by U.S. Trade Representative Jamison Greer and began on Wednesday local time.
This gathering comes at a time of heightened tensions over tariffs, concerns about overcapacity, and growing disagreements among major economies regarding the future of the global trading system.
The first major outcome of the meeting emerged from the Global Forum on Steel Access Capacity, where participating countries agreed on a new framework for coordinated action against excess steel production. Greer mentioned that the “Milwaukee Framework” would demand robust coordinated efforts against additional capacity, including trade measures, monitoring of steel supply chains, and increased scrutiny of transshipment.
When asked if countries had agreed to raise tariffs on Chinese steel, Greer stated that each country would make its own decisions. He emphasized, “Every country will do what it deems appropriate. We want coordination on these measures. The U.S. has taken strong steps, and it may be right for other countries to do the same.”
Goyal is not only representing India in the ministerial meeting but is also conducting bilateral discussions with his counterparts. India has expressed its commitment to a rules-based, open, inclusive, transparent, fair, and non-discriminatory multilateral trading system, centered around the World Trade Organization (WTO), while ensuring adequate policy space for developing countries.
This stance is particularly significant as the U.S. has placed updating the Most-Favored-Nation principle on the Milwaukee agenda, a cornerstone of the WTO trading system.
The meeting is taking place while New Delhi and Washington are working to advance the India-U.S. Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA) and finalize an interim trade deal. The Ministry of Commerce has indicated that Goyal will engage in bilateral negotiations with his U.S. counterpart, which is part of efforts to develop a balanced and mutually beneficial India-U.S. BTA, in line with the joint statement from February 7, 2026.
The trade discussions gained further political significance following a phone conversation between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Donald Trump on Wednesday. The two leaders discussed bilateral cooperation on trade, defense, energy, and new technologies.
Before the formal talks, Goyal met with CEOs and senior officials from American companies at a roundtable organized by the National Association of Manufacturers, inviting them to increase their investments in India.
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