India and Canada have decided to restart formal negotiations for a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA), with a shared ambition to double bilateral trade to USD 50 billion by 2030, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal announced on Monday.
Speaking at an event in New Delhi, Goyal described a full-fledged FTA or CEPA as far more than a trade deal. “An FTA or Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) has many strategic elements to it and it is a demonstration of the trust between the two countries,” he said. The agreement, he added, would give confidence to investors and businesses on both sides.
“We have agreed to begin negotiations on a high-ambition CEPA and double the trade between the two nations by 2030,” Goyal stated, emphasising that India and Canada are natural allies that do not compete with each other in most sectors.
He highlighted how the complementary strengths of the two economies could act as a force multiplier for businesses and investors. “There is a lot that we can learn from Canada and a lot we can offer Canada. There is a lot of potential on critical minerals, critical minerals processing technologies. There is a good possibility on nuclear energy – particularly with our engagement with Canada on Uranium supplies,” the minister said, adding, “we can diversify our supply chains on both sides”.
The decision to resume talks comes after a difficult phase in bilateral relations. In 2023, Canada had paused FTA negotiations following Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s public allegations of a potential Indian government link to the killing of Khalistani separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar – charges that India rejected as “absurd”. Ties had earlier shown promise when, in March 2022, both countries re-launched talks for an interim Early Progress Trade Agreement (EPTA). More than half a dozen rounds of negotiations have already taken place.
A standard trade agreement typically involves significant reduction or elimination of customs duties on the maximum possible goods traded between the partners, alongside liberalised norms for services trade and investment flows.
Recent trade figures reflect modest growth on the export side and a slight dip in imports. India’s exports to Canada increased 9.8 per cent to USD 4.22 billion in 2024-25 from USD 3.84 billion in 2023-24. Imports from Canada, however, declined 2.33 per cent to USD 4.44 billion in 2024-25 from USD 4.55 billion the previous year.
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The thaw in relations gained momentum after Prime Minister Narendra Modi held talks with new Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Kananaskis, Canada, in June 2025.
Total bilateral trade in goods and services stood at USD 18.38 billion in 2023. Canada is home to approximately 2.9 million people of Indian origin and more than 427,000 Indian students.
To inject fresh energy into economic ties, Piyush Goyal has held two rounds of discussions with Canada’s Minister of Export Promotion, International Trade and Economic Development, Maninder Sidhu. Sidhu visited India recently, and the two ministers co-chaired the India-Canada Ministerial Dialogue on Trade and Investment (MDTI) earlier this month.
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Goyal pointed to emerging areas of cooperation, saying, “We can focus on emerging technologies like AI (artificial intelligence) with data centres, quantum computing, machine learning, all new age technologies where India has very strategic benefits to offer for investors looking to leverage on the AI emerging technologies.”
He stressed the importance of moving beyond dialogue to tangible results and called for actionable outcomes, a clear game plan, sectoral roadmaps, and measurable progress.
“We must activate the CEO forum and resume the forum in the first quarter of 2026 because business-to-business contact will help governmental relations,” Goyal said. He also urged serious advancement of the ACITI (Australia-Canada-India Technology and Innovation) partnership. “We could look at joint innovation,” he added, suggesting that both countries identify priority sectors for deeper collaboration, including critical minerals, critical energy, aerospace and defence capabilities, and manufacturing in India.
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