Mint Quick Edit | Barrier-free entry for Harley-Davidson: A marginal but symbolic revolution

1 day ago 3

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Big US leisure motorbikes entering barrier-free will not disturb local Indian manufacturers. (AFP)

Summary

If Trump’s old grouse over ‘tariff king’ India’s barrier to Harley-Davidson mobikes was about rhetoric more than market reality, then their duty-free entry should overturn a larger narrative. It looks like the story of a stick turning into a lever.

Ever since Donald Trump first became US President, India’s high import duty on Harley Davidson motorcycles has been a pet peeve of his against Indian policy. So much so that he called India a “tariff king." It has been clear ever since that any early- harvest trade pact with the US under him would have to let these big bikes vroom their way freely onto Indian streets.

News reports suggest that the framework that has been agreed upon will remove India’s 40% duty on 800-1,600cc sized mobikes, a slashed rate that was in itself a peace offering made soon after Trump took office for a second term.

His apparent Harley fixation may have been symbolic. The segment this brand targets has only a tiny slice of India’s mostly utility-use market for two-wheelers. Big US leisure motorbikes entering barrier-free will not disturb local Indian manufacturers, one of which, Hero MotoCorp, has a tie-up with Harley Davidson to sell its products in India.

But if it shifts how India fares in White House rhetoric on the country’s openness as a trade partner, it could ease the saleability in America of far stronger ties with New Delhi. Sometimes, a small lever can be used for outsized effects. This seems like an example.

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