Canada and India hold a sixth round of trade talks as Ottawa targets $70 billion in two-way trade by 2030
International Trade Minister Maninder Sidhu met India's commerce minister in New Delhi; India's shipments to Canada rose 20.7% in 2025, Ottawa says.
Canada and India have held a sixth round of negotiations toward a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA), and Ottawa says the deal would help double two-way trade to $70 billion by 2030.
International Trade Minister Maninder Sidhu wrapped up a three-day visit to India this week, Global Affairs Canada said in a Nov. 13 release. He joined negotiators in New Delhi for the sixth round and met Piyush Goyal, India's Minister of Commerce and Industry, to discuss progress on the agreement.
The release does not say when Ottawa expects talks to conclude.
What moves between the two countries
Global Affairs Canada listed the main goods in each direction:
- Canada to India: vegetables, mineral fuels and oils, wood pulp, fertilizer, and paper and paperboard.
- India to Canada: precious stones and metals, machinery, pharmaceutical products, electronics, and iron or steel products.
Canada's merchandise imports from India were worth $9.7 billion in 2025, up 20.7% from 2024, according to the department. It also said Canadian affiliates employed more than 68,900 people in India in 2024, while Indian affiliates employed more than 37,900 Canadians.
Air links on the agenda too
In New Delhi, Sidhu also met IndiGo Airlines about Canada-India aviation ties and the airline's international expansion, and met India's Minister of Civil Aviation, Kinjarapu Ram Mohan Naidu, about code-share services for Canadian airlines and air connectivity between the two countries. He then represented Canada at the Confederation of Indian Industry Partnership Summit in Visakhapatnam.
Why carriers should watch it
Much of that trade is bulk and containerized freight such as wood pulp, fertilizer, paper, machinery and steel products. Those are loads that pass through Canadian ports, rail ramps and truck terminals on their way to and from customers. A concluded agreement would not change rules for carriers by itself, but it is one of several trade files Ottawa is pushing as it looks to diversify trade.
"With a market of nearly 1.5 billion people, India presents significant opportunities for Canadian businesses across a range of sectors, from agri-food and clean energy to AI and aerospace," Sidhu said in the release.