India amended its Foreign Trade Policy in July 2026 to ban imports of goods made wholly or partly with forced labour, a point Piyush Goyal raised in Milwaukee.
MILWAUKEE: Trade ministers of the G20 met in Milwaukee on 30 September and 1 October 2026 under the US Presidency and reached consensus on just one of four agenda items. All members agreed that trade in food and agricultural inputs must not be used for political or economic coercion. However, talks on industrial excess capacity, reform of the most-favoured-nation (MFN) principle and forced labour ended without a joint text. Union Minister of Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal led India’s delegation as part of a 29 September to 5 October visit that also took in Chicago and New York.
A fractured table
US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer chaired the meeting. On excess capacity, a draft statement backed by most members was blocked by a small group led by China, which resisted language on state subsidies. Greer said the Presidency was “severely disappointed.” Similarly, the forced labour session produced only a separate statement from the US, Mexico and Argentina, while the MFN discussion yielded no agreed text.
India’s approach followed a principle set out by Prime Minister Narendra Modi: disagreements that cannot be settled together should not block progress where agreement is possible. Accordingly, Goyal ran two tracks, defending India’s positions in the plenaries while pressing bilateral talks on the sidelines.
Food: the one point of agreement
India backed the consensus on food coercion, with Goyal saying food must remain a tool of human security, never geopolitical pressure. Notably, he drew a firm line between coercion and legitimate domestic policy. Developing countries, he argued, must keep the freedom to run public stockholding, procurement programmes and transparent temporary export measures. He cited India’s food welfare coverage, procurement support for small and marginal farmers and the role of affordable fertiliser in farm yields.
Capacity is not the culprit
On excess capacity, Goyal said India has no structural overcapacity in the sectors the US had flagged. Instead, he described Indian manufacturing as driven by demand from 1.4 billion people and aimed at building full value chains. India shares concerns about subsidy-driven dumping, he said, but argued that “industrial capacity itself is not the problem.” Distortions, in his view, should be tackled through WTO-consistent anti-dumping and countervailing duties, not unilateral action. Consequently, this framing also helps shield programmes such as production-linked incentives from potential trade remedies.
MFN and forced labour
Goyal rejected proposals to make MFN treatment conditional on non-trade obligations. He called non-discrimination a guarantee for both small and large trading nations, and urged preserving special and differential treatment, consensus decision-making and the WTO’s two-tier dispute settlement system.
On forced labour, he described India’s commitment as absolute. He pointed to Article 23 of the Constitution, India’s ratification of ILO Conventions 29 and 105 and a July 2026 amendment to the Foreign Trade Policy banning imports of goods made wholly or partly with forced labour. Nevertheless, he argued that border enforcement must rest on specific evidence and due process, not blanket presumptions about countries or sectors.
The sideline push
The bilateral track was busy. With Greer, Goyal held what he called a “productive discussion” on an interim deal under the India–US Bilateral Trade Agreement. India insists on tariff treatment at least as favourable as that given to competing exporters. However, US officials have since indicated that a final agreement is not imminent.
With Canadian International Trade Minister Maninder Sidhu, Goyal reviewed CEPA talks, with the fifth round set for Ottawa. India reiterated a target of $50 billion in bilateral trade by 2030, while Sidhu spoke of a five-year vision of $70 billion. Additionally, Goyal discussed upgrading the Korea CEPA with Trade Minister Park Jung-Sung, seeking wider access for Indian farm, pharma and marine goods. He also advanced India–GCC FTA talks with Saudi Commerce Minister Majid bin Abdullah Al-Kassabi. With France’s Minister Delegate for Foreign Trade Nicolas Forissier, he reviewed the India–EU FTA concluded in January, alongside aerospace and UPI cooperation.
Investment outreach ran alongside. In Milwaukee, Goyal attended a Business Roundtable and National Association of Manufacturers reception at Rockwell Automation’s headquarters, before meeting executives in Chicago and New York.
Why it matters at home
The meeting came at a difficult moment for exporters. West Asia shipping disruptions have pushed up freight costs, prompting the government to extend the RELIEF logistics support scheme and the RoDTEP duty remission scheme until 31 December 2026. Meanwhile, US probes into industrial capacity and labour standards remain a risk. India’s positions in Milwaukee, from food stockholding to evidence-based trade remedies, map directly onto these domestic priorities.
What to watch
Several milestones will show what Milwaukee delivered. Firstly, the text of any India–US interim deal, especially its tariff parity terms, remains the biggest test. Secondly, progress at the Ottawa CEPA round and the legal signing of the India–EU FTA will follow. Thirdly, the expiry of RoDTEP’s extension in December and any US trade determinations will shape exporters’ outlook. Encouragingly, India has offered full support to the UK’s G20 Presidency in 2027, keeping the multilateral door open.
For now, India left Milwaukee with its core multilateral positions intact and several trade negotiations moving forward. Whether the sideline progress turns into signed deals will define the visit’s real value.
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