India, Canada begin next round of talks on proposed trade pact: Official
India and Canada began the fourth round of negotiations for a proposed Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) in New Delhi, with both sides aiming to conclude talks within the year.
The five-day round of talks covers trade in goods, services, rules of origin, and technical barriers to trade, among other chapters.
The two countries have set a target of raising bilateral trade to $50 billion by 2030, up from current levels.
The round follows the third round of talks held earlier in Ottawa, continuing a negotiation process that had been paused for a period after 2023 and resumed following high-level engagement between the two governments.
CEPA vs FTA vs CECA
A Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) is a more ambitious trade instrument than a standard Free Trade Agreement (FTA). While an FTA typically focuses on eliminating or reducing tariffs on goods, a CEPA additionally covers trade in services, investment, intellectual property, government procurement, technical barriers to trade, and dispute settlement mechanisms.
The India-Canada talks are explicitly termed a CEPA (not a bare FTA), and the announced agenda — goods, services, rules of origin, and technical barriers — mirrors the standard CEPA template UPSC expects candidates to distinguish from a narrower FTA.
India-Canada Bilateral Trade Relations
India and Canada are Commonwealth partners with growing economic linkages, though the relationship saw a diplomatic rupture in 2023 that stalled trade talks before their resumption.
Key Details
- Two-way merchandise trade between India and Canada stood at roughly $10.9 billion in 2025 (about $7.0 billion of Indian exports to Canada and $3.9 billion of Canadian exports to India).
- CEPA negotiations, originally launched years earlier, were suspended following diplomatic tensions in 2023 and formally relaunched after both governments agreed in November 2025 to restart talks, with a year-end 2026 target for conclusion.
- Canada is home to one of the largest Indian-origin diaspora populations outside India and hosts significant Indian-origin investment and pension-fund capital (e.g., CPPIB, CDPQ) in Indian infrastructure and markets.
This fourth round is a direct continuation of the post-2025 diplomatic reset; the "conclude this year" framing and the $50 billion-by-2030 trade target are the testable specifics linking the event to India's broader FTA/CEPA outreach strategy (alongside the UK, EU, and Gulf-region pacts).
- Fourth round of India-Canada CEPA talks: New Delhi, five days, covering goods, services, rules of origin, and technical trade barriers.
- Bilateral trade target: $50 billion by 2030 (current 2025 two-way trade: approximately $10.9 billion).
- Third round of talks was held in Ottawa; talks aim to conclude by end of 2026.
- India's other comprehensive trade pacts: India-UAE CEPA (2022), India-Australia ECTA (2022), India-South Korea CEPA — used as reference templates for the "comprehensive" tier of agreements.