Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi urged the country on Friday to move towards more self-reliance, manufacture everything from fertilisers to jet engines and EV batteries, and vowed to protect farmers in the face of a trade conflict with Washington.

US President Donald Trump’s administration hit India with a 25 per cent tariff from July 1, then last week doubled the amount to 50 per cent by adding a “secondary” 25 per cent tariff for its purchases of Russian oil, which Washington argues is helping fuel Moscow’s war in Ukraine.

India secured a higher investment grade rating from S&P Global Ratings, which said the economy’s growth prospects won’t be derailed by President Donald Trump administration’s 50% tariff shock to the country.