Modi leaves Washington empty-handed as Trump doubles down on tariffs

If Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi went to Washington this week with one goal, it was that his “friend” US President Donald Trump exempt India from his sweeping war on tariffs. Since taking office less than a month ago, Mr Trump has doled out increased tariffs to Canada, Mexico and China — the first two which are now on pause — and been indicating many, if not all, of the US’ trading partners were in the firing line. From a purely numbers perspective, India was always a sitting duck. Trade between the two countries has long been a thorn in…