A report by the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) has hauled up three Indian markets and a leading e-commerce platform for facilitating the sale of counterfeit goods amid fears of a trade war under Donald Trump, who is days away from taking over the American presidency on January 20.
The report identifies Mumbai’s Heera Panna, Bengaluru’s SP Road Market and Delhi’s Tank Road Market in Karol Bagh as hubs for counterfeit products, from luxury watches to electronics.
It also pulled up IndiaMART, one of India’s largest e-commerce platforms, for its alleged inability to curb the sale of counterfeit goods, including pharmaceuticals
The timing of the report coincides with Trump’s threat to invoke emergency powers and impose tariffs on trading partners, including China, Canada and Mexico, sparking fears of a global trade war.
While the report underscores the risks posed by counterfeit medicines and illicit online pharmacies, analysts view it as part of a broader strategy by the US to leverage trade concerns for political and economic gains.
The report also criticises IndiaMART for insufficient monitoring of counterfeit listings and cumbersome takedown processes, despite the platform’s claims of compliance with takedown requests.
Ram Singh, head of the IIFT New Delhi, suggested the US is using the report to apply transactional pressure, potentially disregarding WTO norms.