Canada aims to seal India trade pact by year-end amid push to diversify ties

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Agencies

Canada aims to seal a trade pact with India by the end of 2026 as Ottawa seeks to diversify trade and reduce its reliance on the US

Speaking to Reuters at the Canadian High Commission in New Delhi, Anand said the proposed Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) with India was an important part of Ottawa's efforts to diversify its trade partnerships.

“Canada has a goal of doubling non-US trade over the next 10 years,” she said.

The push comes as Prime Minister Mark Carney's government looks to strengthen economic ties with the European Union, China and other markets, while continuing to work with Washington on trade, defence and security.

Anand said Canada and the European Union were expected to discuss closer cooperation in critical minerals, energy and artificial intelligence at a summit later this month. The talks would build on their existing trade relationship under the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA).

Canada has also signed a free trade agreement with Indonesia and is looking to finalise a deal with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in 2026. According to Anand, the country already has 15 trade agreements covering 51 countries and around 1.5 billion consumers.

“It is really about our national resilience and our sovereignty,” Anand said, highlighting the fact that Canada could not afford to depend too heavily on any single country for its economic strength.

India trade deal gathers pace

Anand said negotiations were moving in the right direction on the proposed trade pact with India.

Indian trade negotiators visited Canada last week, whereas Canadian Trade Minister Maninder Sidhu was in India along with a business delegation.

The agreement has also come up in discussions between Carney and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Anand said. Modi is expected to travel to Canada in December.

Ottawa believes a trade agreement could help push annual bilateral trade in goods and services to $70 billion by 2030, more than double the $30.4 billion recorded in 2025.

Goods trade between the two countries stood at $10.9 billion in 2025. Canadian exports to India declined 26.5% from the previous year, but imports from India increased 18.9%.

Anand pointed to some recent deals as signs of growing economic cooperation between the two countries.

Among them is a C$2.6 billion uranium supply agreement signed earlier this year between Canadian company Cameco and India.

Another major development is Fairfax Financial Holdings' agreement to acquire a majority stake in IDBI Bank for ₹52,878 crore ($5.56 billion). The transaction is expected to become India's largest cross-border banking deal.

India, Canada seek to put diplomatic tensions behind them

The renewed focus on trade comes as India and Canada work to repair ties which has been disrupted by a diplomatic dispute over the 2023 killing of Sikh separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Canada.

The row had led to a sharp deterioration in relations between the two countries, complicating efforts to deepen their economic partnership.

Anand acknowledged that rebuilding relations would take time. She said national security and respect for the rule of law would remain important as both sides worked towards improving ties.

“We are speaking about our sovereignty and our resilience, and we need to continue to focus on that,” she said.

(With Reuters inputs)