The Dawn of a New Era in U.S. Trade Policy

“India is putting their money where their mouth is. If they're able to execute upon a free trade agreement or a pseudo free trade agreement...then that would create the fluidity to buoy all of those ships in that harbor.” - Samir Kapadia - Managing Principal at Vogel Group and Founder and CEO at India Index

Regardless of the topic, 2024 was filled with ‘what if’ conversations. We were waiting to find out who would win the U.S. Presidential election–and therefore whose policies would be dominating business decisions in 2025 and beyond.

Of all of the conversations had on the Art of Supply podcast, one of the most compelling was with Samir Kapadia, Managing Principal at Vogel Group and Founder and CEO at India Index. He joined Kelly Barner in 2024 to share his expertise on global trade, but more specifically, how India’s ascendency as a global trading partner is being watched as companies look for alternatives to China and nations flush with Chinese investment.

After such a riveting pre-election conversation, Kelly brought Samir back to bring the conversation up-to-date and get a sense of how new trade policy will impact supply chain decisions and global manufacturing potential.

In this episode of the Art of Supply podcast, Kelly and Samir cover how the upcoming presidential term is going to:

• Change the way the U.S. manages policy within the Department of Commerce and Trade and U.S. Trade Representative
• Use strategic tariff regimes to increase reciprocity and incentivize supply chain organizations to think differently about where they get their materials
• Create an opportunity for India to replace China as a major manufacturing trade partner

Links:

• Samir Kapadia on LinkedIn
• Evaluating India as a Viable Alternative to China
• Kelly Barner on LinkedIn
• Art of Supply LinkedIn newsletter 
• Art of Supply on AOP
• Subscribe to This Week in Procurement