Arun Jaitley raises visa issue with U.S.

Reuters
FILE PHOTO: Indian Finance Minister Arun Jaitley addresses a delegation while speaking on the Goods and Services Tax (GST) issues during the Vibrant Gujarat investor summit in Gandhinagar, India January 11, 2017. REUTERS/Amit Dave/File Photo

MUMBAI (Reuters) - Finance Minister Arun Jaitley discussed the issue of an executive order on high-skilled visas that affects the country's $150-billion information technology sector with U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross in Washington on Thursday. Jaitley expressed hope that the Trump administration would take into account the contributions of Indian professionals in the United States before taking any decision, India's finance ministry said in a statement on Friday. U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday ordered a review of the U.S. visa programme for bringing high-skilled foreign workers into the country, a move that affects India's software services exporters who use the programme to fly engineers and developers to service clients. (Reporting by Sankalp Phartiyal; Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips)