The Trump administration has doubled tariffs on Indian exports to 50%, citing New Delhi’s continued purchases of Russian crude. An executive order published this week imposes an additional 25-percentage-point "secondary" duty on top of an earlier 25% levy, with the second tranche taking effect on Aug. 27. The measure marks Washington’s first use of secondary tariffs aimed at curbing third-party imports of Russian energy and deepens a trade dispute between the world’s largest and fourth-largest economies. Prime Minister Narendra Modi dismissed the pressure during an Aug. 4 speech, urging Indians to buy domestically made goods and signalling that refiners are free to keep sourcing Russian oil. India’s foreign ministry called the tariff hike “unfair, unjustified and unreasonable” and warned that it may take “necessary countermeasures.” Exporters say roughly 55% of shipments to the United States now face a 30-35% cost disadvantage, raising the prospect of job losses in sectors from textiles to seafood. Energy markets are at the heart of the standoff. India has been purchasing about 1.7 million barrels a day of Russian crude—roughly 40% of its imports—after Western sanctions drove the barrels to Asia at hefty discounts. Those discounts have narrowed to around US$2 a barrel, squeezing margins. State-owned refiners are reportedly cutting back spot purchases for September cargoes, while Reliance Industries, the country’s largest private refiner, remains the biggest single buyer with roughly 520 million barrels lifted since 2022. The clash complicates U.S.–India negotiations on a broader trade pact and widens rifts over India’s membership in the BRICS bloc. New Delhi has threatened to appeal to the World Trade Organization, and analysts warn that Washington’s action could encourage retaliatory steps from India and other countries also hit by new U.S. trade barriers on Brazil, Canada and China.