‘Make in America’ was a project of Trump’s first term. In his second term, Trump has become overambitious about this policy. He has linked America’s trade policy with foreign policy and is trying to drive the world his way. With an economy of 21 trillion and a per capita income of $41,071, advanced technology, world-class infrastructure and innovation are America’s strengths. But Trump has taken this strength as a right to bully.
Both ‘Make in India’ and ‘Make in America’ are ambitious initiatives. They have been launched to promote manufacturing and strengthen self-reliance in their respective countries. The aim of both these schemes is more or less to promote domestic industries, reduce dependence on imports and create jobs. There seems to be no problem till here. But the excessive ambition of President Donald Trump has turned ‘Make in America’ into a trade war of the United States. He wants to achieve the objective of ‘Make in America’ through tariff war.
If ‘Make in America ‘ was just America’s trade agenda, it would have been fine, but Trump has turned it into a geostrategic agenda and to achieve this goal, he wants to run the foreign policies of the countries of the world according to his own wishes. Looking at India’s purchase of crude oil from Russia from the prism of the Ukraine war instead of looking at it from the prism of the needs of the world’s most populous country is part of this policy of Trump.
Trump feels that America has given unnecessary concessions to its trading partners in the last few years. He blames the policies of former President and Democratic leader Joe Biden for this. He wants to reverse it at all costs.
From chips to ships, everything is made in America…
Although Trump started the ‘Make in America’ policy during his first term in 2017, but with the second term in 2025, Trump became aggressive and stubborn about this policy.
The policy aims to manufacture everything from “chips to ships” in the US. With a $21 trillion economy and a per capita income of $41,071, advanced technology, world-class infrastructure and innovation are America’s strengths. These strengths also give America the right to bully itself by disobeying international treaties, international institutions and prevailing business norms.
This is the reason why Trump imposed a 25 percent tariff on India. Apart from this, he also talked about imposing a penalty on India for buying oil from Russia. So that the products imported from India to America become expensive and companies are forced to do local production.
Trump’s policies become ridiculous when he tries to curb India’s right to trade. On the night of August 4, Trump said that he will impose more tariffs on India. Giving the reason for this, he said that India is buying large quantities of crude oil from Russia and making profits by selling it in the open market. Trump alleged that India does not care about the people being killed in Ukraine.
India wasted no time in responding to President Trump’s absurd statement. India said that at the beginning of the Ukraine war, the US itself was encouraging India to import so that prices in the international energy market could remain stable.
India said that the purpose of our crude oil import from Russia is to allow Indian consumers to buy fuel according to their affordability. This is an essential requirement that has arisen from global conditions. India said that the countries that are criticizing India in this matter are themselves doing business with Russia.
Integrating foreign and trade policy
By linking foreign policy with trade policy, Trump wants to establish his dominance on international forums, while through ‘Make in America’ he wants to strengthen the domestic economy.
Calling for ‘Make in America’, Trump said that the objective of the US is to bring its manufacturing capacity back to the country, reduce foreign dependency and protect American workers. He called the foreign trade deficit and “unfair global trade” a national emergency and ordered the imposition of a minimum 10% tariff on all countries.
According to Trump, ‘Made in America’ is not just a slogan, but an economic and national security priority. He believes that these tariff and policy changes will lead to cars, appliances and other goods being made in America, which will provide good-paying jobs to Americans and strengthen America’s industrial base.
Trump clarified that this step is necessary for America’s competitiveness, autonomy and security.
The US maintains a global lead in semiconductors, aviation and medical devices. Trump’s policies in 2017-2020 increased jobs in the steel and automotive sectors. Tariffs and tax relief encouraged companies to invest in the US.
Will America be able to function without India?
But while trumpeting ‘Make in America’, Trump forgets that this campaign has some limitations of its own.
Indian talent and cheap labour are India’s strengths. Wages in America are 3 to 5 times higher than in India. Skilled labour is a challenge for America. Indians are renowned all over the world in the fields of software, management and IT.
The supply chain of global trade has been disrupted due to American supply. Due to this, many companies have turned to India. India has established itself in the global supply chain on the basis of cheap labor and low production cost, especially in auto, textile, food processing, mobile and electronics sectors. Schemes like PLI (Production Linked Incentive) are promoting manufacturing.
Companies like Apple are now focusing on manufacturing their products in India. Apple’s production in India is set to reach $14 billion in 2024, which shows India’s potential.
This was not possible with the labor cost of America. Former Indian Commerce Secretary Anup Wadhawan has made an important statement on Make in India vs Make in America. He has said that, “America’s new tariff policy does not pose any major threat to ‘Make in India’, because America’s economy is relatively unfriendly for large manufacturing. The cost and wages there are very high – for example, if an iPhone is made in America, its price can be up to $3,000–$4,000.”
Although the US is ahead of India in technology-based products such as semiconductors and AI, it cannot compete with India or China in the production of cheap goods. India has a strong position in global trade. Partnerships with Russia, Japan and ASEAN connect it to the global supply chain.
This move by Trump and American policymakers is impractical. It hurts the policy of free trade. It is very funny that America was once an advocate of this policy.
America will have to knock on the door of Taiwan for semiconductors. It will have to do business with China for rare earth materials and will have to depend on countries like India for cheap consumer goods.
If America keeps on harping on ‘Make in America’, then American consumers may have to face a double whammy. On one hand, the goods will become expensive due to high production cost and on the other hand, the high tariff will also make foreign goods very expensive in America. This poses a risk of inflation.
If the tariff game continues for long, countries like China, India and Europe can also impose retaliatory tariffs on American goods in response. This can affect America’s foreign trade. This can harm American exports. India is looking for new markets, while America’s protectionist policies can isolate it.
