Dhaka, Washington begin final tariff talks today

Bangladesh and the United States are set to hold final negotiations today and tomorrow in Washington to reach a resolution on the US-proposed Reciprocal Tariff Agreement, a key issue affecting Bangladesh's largest single-country export market.

To attend the high-stakes meeting with the United States Trade Representative (USTR), Commerce Adviser Sk Bashir Uddin departed Dhaka for Washington yesterday evening.

Earlier, during a meeting on 26 June, the USTR reportedly declined Bangladesh's proposals to cap tariff rates on its exports to the US at 10%. 

In that meeting, Dhaka had asked the USTR to provide a tariff schedule listing the products for which it seeks zero-duty access from Bangladesh, but as of Wednesday evening, the US had not provided the requested document, Commerce Secretary Mahbubur Rahman told TBS.

"In the absence of the US tariff schedule [an official list that specifies tariff rates applied to different imported or exported goods], negotiations will proceed based on the draft Reciprocal Tariff Agreement previously shared by the US," he said.

"The commerce adviser headed to the US for the negotiations. We are very much on track. We will continue talks until the last moment to reach a resolution."

On 2 April, US President Donald Trump imposed high reciprocal tariffs on Bangladesh and other countries. Later, he announced a suspension of these tariffs for three months, which will expire on 9 July.

Recently, in an interview with Fox News, Trump said that after 9 July, the reciprocal tariffs on various countries will be enforced. He mentioned that the tariff rates might change based on how much concession each country offers during ongoing negotiations with the US.

Bangladesh's interim government's National Security Adviser Khalilur Rahman has been in Washington in advance to negotiate the reciprocal tariff agreement. The commerce adviser will join him today.

A commerce ministry official stated that the commerce adviser left for the US following signals of a possible reduction in the 37% reciprocal tariff imposed on Bangladesh by the United States. However, the official was unable to specify the extent of the potential tariff cut.

The US has urged countries to negotiate reciprocal tariff exemptions, but except for the UK, no nation has agreed due to conflicting trade conditions.

Sources familiar with the tariff negotiations said the US proposal lacks standard legal language typically found in bilateral trade agreements. The proposal includes clauses that would compel Bangladesh to adopt US-imposed sanctions and tariff increases on third countries.

Dhaka has expressed objections, saying it cannot legally adopt another nation's domestic laws as binding for its international trade practices.

Another contentious clause prevents Bangladesh from offering lower tariffs to any other country for products already granted concessions to the US.

Officials argue this breaches the World Trade Organisation'sMost-Favoured Nation principle, which requires equal treatment for all trading partners.

According to officials, Bangladesh's primary concern is ensuring it does not face higher tariffs than its competitors. As no breakthroughs have been reported in US negotiations with Vietnam or China, Dhaka is finding some relief.

Currently, the average US tariff stands at 37% for Bangladeshi goods, 46% for Vietnamese products, and even higher for Chinese exports. If Trump's reciprocal model is uniformly applied, policymakers believe Bangladesh will not be at a competitive disadvantage.