Bangladesh and the United States are going to begin a high-level meeting in Washington on Thursday to finalise a reciprocal tariff agreement before the expiration of a critical deadline that could see Bangladeshi goods face sharply higher duties in the US market.
The two-day meeting, taking place on July 3-4, is being attended by Commerce Adviser SK Bashir Uddin and National Security Adviser Khalilur Rahman from the Bangladesh side, while the US is represented by officials from the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR).
At stake is Bangladesh’s access to its single largest export market, where total exports reached $8.4 billion in 2024, forming the lion’s share of a $10.6 billion bilateral trade relationship.
The urgency of the meeting stems from the 90-day suspension period on US reciprocal tariffs, which is set to expire on July 9. If a deal is not reached, a punitive 37% duty, imposed in addition to the existing 16% base rate, could be reinstated, raising the total tariff to 53% on Bangladeshi goods.
To counter this, Bangladesh has reportedly proposed maintaining the 16% base rate and adding only 10% as a reciprocal duty, capping the total at 26%. This was submitted as part of Dhaka’s response to the third draft proposal shared by the USTR.
Negotiations remain under wraps due to a non-disclosure agreement signed by both parties, but officials close to the talks suggest the US is yet to agree on several provisions, including Bangladesh’s insistence on adhering to World Trade Organization rules and applying the Most Favoured Nation (MFN) principle across all trade partners.
Amid growing pressure from domestic exporters, Bangladeshi officials are lobbying for a fair resolution that balances market access with national interest.
However, with many countries also negotiating similar deals, there is speculation that the US may extend the tariff suspension period for another 90 days if consensus remains elusive.
