New Delhi: Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will not attend the annual World Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF) meetings in Washington this week.

Secretary of the Department of Economic Affairs, Anuradha Thakur, will head the Indian delegation, taking her place. Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Sanjay Malhotra and Chief Economic Adviser V. Anantha Nageswaran will also be part of the team.

Sitharaman’s decision to stay away from the meeting reflects the continuing trade friction between the two nations. Previously, the Trump administration levied a 50 per cent tariff on Indian exports, including a 25 per cent penalty related to India’s purchase of Russian oil.

India and the US are still working through trade disagreements, and New Delhi’s decision to keep buying Rus

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