Trump says US 'very close' to trade deal with India

US President Donald Trump on Wednesday said that Washington is “very close” to a trade deal with India.

“We're very close to a deal with India, where they open it up,” Trump said in the Oval Office while talking to reporters during a bilateral meeting with Crown Prince and Prime Minister of Bahrain Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa.

“We've made deals with a lot of great places… We have another one coming up, maybe with India. I don't know; we're in negotiation. When I send out a letter, that's a deal,” Trump said.

A day earlier, Trump had said that America will have access to the Indian market as a trade deal with the country is being worked on.

“We will have full access to Indonesia, and we have a couple of those deals that are going to be announced. India basically is working along that same line. We're going to have access to India,” he said.

“And you have to understand, we had no access into any of these countries. Our people couldn't go in. And now we're getting access because of what we're doing with the tariffs,” Trump added while talking to reporters as he departed the White House en route to Pittsburgh.

India and the US have been holding negotiations for the trade pact primarily to keep the tariffs below 20%