San Francisco Frontiers - Rubio says India diversifying oil, trade deal 'very close'

Rubio arrived in Mumbai for a three-day visit, his second official trip to India this year, as the two countries seek to overcome trade tensions and deepen energy ties.

India is a major importer of Russian oil, and US President Donald Trump's tariff war launched in April last year has added to friction between Washington and New Delhi.

"What India has expressed repeatedly is their desire to diversify their energy portfolio, which is a smart thing to do," Rubio told reporters in India's financial capital.

"It's not easy to do that from one day to the next, so I think they've made substantial progress in that regard, and we're happy to see that."

India is wary of US trade measures, including a law allowing tariffs of up to 100 percent on countries buying Russian oil, although Trump signed an executive order last week that waived those threatened sanctions.

Rubio last visited India in May, when he met Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

He is not scheduled to meet Modi this time, but held talks on Tuesday with his counterpart, Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, and will meet business leaders.

They discussed "energy security and defence cooperation while reaffirming the importance of advancing the US-India strategic partnership", Rubio said on social media after their meeting.

- 'Small number' -

The top US diplomat will visit Jamnagar, in the western state of Gujarat, a port and stronghold of billionaire Mukesh Ambani's Reliance conglomerate and its flagship refinery, the world's largest.

"India is a refining superpower," Rubio said, adding that "we think we could be a source of some of their energy inputs".

The two countries reached an interim trade agreement in February aimed at reducing US tariffs on Indian goods.

However, the US Supreme Court struck down Trump's sweeping tariffs days later, fuelling uncertainty over when the agreement would take effect.

The two sides have been negotiating ever since.

Indian Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said this month the talks had reached "a plateau, beyond which giving or taking might be very, very difficult".

Rubio was more upbeat on Tuesday.

"We're very, very close; I would say we're about as close as you can be without having an executed agreement. I think there's a small number of items left to wrap up," he said.

"Hopefully have some good news to announce fairly soon, and perhaps the leaders can sign it thereafter."

Agriculture remains a sensitive area for India, which is reluctant to expose farmers to greater foreign competition.

Washington, meanwhile, wants India to buy more US energy supplies.

Goods exports to the United States jumped 21 percent in August to $8.3 billion compared to the same month a year earlier, when India faced 50 percent tariffs.

The surge in exports has been a bright spot for the Indian economy, which has been roiled by high energy prices due to the Middle East war.

Economists say that a return of higher tariffs would cast a shadow over India's growth outlook, hurt market sentiment and heap pressure on an already-weak rupee.

W.Carter--SFF