Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal on Monday squashed a media report claiming India had turned down a rapid trade deal with the US and was negotiating for better terms.On his official X handle, Goyal wrote, “This news is completely false, baseless and misleading. I had fantastic meetings with USTR Jamieson Greer, @USTradeRep, when he visited Delhi in June.”“Both sides reaffirmed their commitment to an agreement that is balanced, commercially meaningful, and delivers tangible benefits for businesses, farmers, workers and consumers in both countries. Our teams remain fully engaged in achieving this objective,” the post reads.According to officials and analysts cited by Reuters earlier, India rejected a quick trade deal with the US in recent negotiations and was waiting for a better deal as Prime Minister Narendra Modi gained trust from new trading partners, reduced economic risks and achieved political wins at home.Goyal’s statement, which reiterates that both nations are still in talks to reach a mutually beneficial trade agreement, clearly disputes the claim.Meanwhile, Commerce Secretary Rajesh Agrawal reaffirmed that talks on the proposed India-US trade deal are still on course during a trade briefing in New Delhi earlier today.“We don’t see any challenge in India-US trade deal negotiations. Consultations are progressing in the right direction, and both sides remain positive. India-US framework trade deal is ready for signing at an appropriate time. Trade ties continue to strengthen, including energy imports from the US,” Agrawal highlighted.He said the framework agreement is prepared and will be signed at the appropriate time. “We are prepared to sign, but agreements are based on comparative advantage; these preferences are in contrast to certain rivals and nations. We are structuring that so that it may be signed,” he added.Agrawal continued, “We are progressing well on the BTA, we don’t see any challenges.”He further added that India has been expanding its energy imports from the US, which further diversifies India’s energy imports.