Canada’s Minister of International Trade Maninder Sidhu has said that trade talks between India and Canada are gaining momentum and negotiations on the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) are expected to conclude this year. Mr Sidhu, who arrived in Mumbai yesterday, said the progress towards concluding the agreement would take bilateral relations to new heights and further strengthen the economic partnership between the two countries. 

 

Leading a 300-member trade delegation to India, Mr Sidhu said the CEPA could help more than double bilateral trade from the current 30 billion US dollars to 70 billion dollars by 2030. Meanwhile, Union Minister for Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal said India and Canada were embarking on a promising new chapter in their relationship. 

In a post on X, Mr Goyal said the two ministers discussed how the CEPA could provide a strong foundation for expanding bilateral trade and investment ties. He added that combining India’s scale, manufacturing capabilities and skilled workforce with Canada’s strengths in technology, resources and innovation could help build more resilient supply chains and create new business opportunities in both countries.