Modi, in Davos, Praises Globalization Without Noting India’s Trade Barriers<br />At 70 percent, the tariffs that India is considering on imported solar panels would be more than double those<br />that the Trump administration said on Monday it would impose on such panels.<br />Mr. Modi’s government is also considering a recommendation by India’s Directorate General of Safeguards, Customs and Central Excise<br />that the country impose 70 percent tariffs on imported solar panels.<br />But he said he also worried that if the recommendation for 70 percent tariffs on imported<br />solar panels were adopted, solar energy could become unaffordable for many Indians.<br />“Their intention is not only to avoid globalization, but they also want to reverse its natural flow.”<br />Notably missing from the speech was any mention of recent moves by Mr. Modi’s own government to restrict imports into India<br />as part of a broad industrial policy meant to force foreign companies to increase manufacturing operations in the country.<br />Mark Wu, a former trade negotiator for the United States who is now an assistant professor of trade law at Harvard University<br />and who attended Mr. Modi’s speech, said India faced a challenge in terms of imports: attracting foreign manufacturers without appearing to violate international trade norms.
