India, Canada To Begin Fifth Round Of Trade Pact Negotiations
Both countries aim to conclude negotiations before the year ends.
India and Canada will begin the fifth round of negotiations for the proposed Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) in Ottawa on October 5, with both sides aiming to conclude the trade pact by the end of 2026. The five-day round will continue until October 9, according to an official cited by PTI. The fourth round of negotiations was held in New Delhi and concluded on September 18, as the two countries seek to accelerate discussions on the proposed agreement.
The latest round comes as bilateral economic engagement gains momentum following a prolonged period of strained relations. Canada's Trade Minister Maninder Sidhu is scheduled to visit New Delhi later this month with a 300-member business delegation, providing an opportunity to strengthen commercial ties alongside the formal negotiations. Sidhu had met Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal in Mumbai last month to review progress on the CEPA talks and discuss ways to advance the negotiations.
The proposed CEPA is intended to significantly reduce or eliminate customs duties on a wide range of goods traded between the two countries. Such agreements can also facilitate investment and improve market access for services and skilled professionals. India and Canada originally launched negotiations for the pact in 2015 and conducted more than half a dozen rounds through 2017 before the process was put on hold. Talks were relaunched in March 2022 for an interim trade agreement, known as the Early Progress Trade Agreement.
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Negotiations were paused again in 2023 after relations deteriorated following then Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's allegation of a potential Indian link to the killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar. India rejected the allegation as "absurd". The two countries agreed in November 2025 to resume formal negotiations for the proposed free trade agreement, following renewed diplomatic engagement. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney also met on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Kananaskis, Canada, in June 2026, helping provide fresh momentum to bilateral ties.
Trade remains an important component of the relationship despite recent fluctuations. Bilateral goods trade fell 8.23 per cent to USD 7.95 billion in 2025-26 from USD 8.7 billion in 2024-25. India's exports to Canada increased 10.63 per cent to USD 4.67 billion, while imports from Canada declined 26.14 per cent to USD 3.28 billion. India's major exports include pharmaceuticals, iron and steel, seafood, cotton garments, electronic goods and chemicals, while key imports include pulses, coal, fertilisers, paper and crude petroleum.
The economic relationship also extends to services, investment and people-to-people ties. India receives significant demand in Canada for telecommunications, computer and information services and other business services, while the country has around 2.9 million people of Indian origin and more than 4.27 lakh Indian students. Canada has invested USD 4.8 billion in India between April 2000 and June 2026, underscoring the potential significance of a comprehensive trade agreement for expanding investment and commercial opportunities between the two countries.
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