Union Minister of Commerce and Industry, Shri Piyush Goyal, is leading a delegation of Indian business leaders to Canada, with engagements in Ottawa on May 25 and a two-day programme in Toronto from May 26 to 27. The visit carries forward the mandate given by the Prime Ministers of India and Canada during Prime Minister Mark Carney’s visit to India in March 2026, and seeks to impart renewed momentum to bilateral engagement across trade, investment, energy, technology, and people-to-people ties.
A central focus of the visit is the advancement of India–Canada Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) negotiations. The Terms of Reference were signed during Prime Minister Carney’s visit to India in March 2026. The first round of negotiations was conducted virtually in March and the second round concluded on May 8, 2026. During this visit, a further round of negotiations will be conducted in Ottawa from May 25 to 29. Both sides are working towards an early conclusion of a balanced and mutually beneficial CEPA by end of 2026, with a shared ambition to expand bilateral trade to CAD 70 billion (approximately INR 4.65 lakh crore) by 2030. Bilateral trade stands at USD 8.5 billion in FY25, with significant potential for expansion across sectors.
The delegation will engage with Canadian counterparts across priority sectors, including Technology and Artificial Intelligence; Clean Energy and Critical Minerals; Pharmaceuticals and Biotechnology; Aerospace and Defence; and Food Processing and Agri-tech areas where India and Canada possess highly complementary strengths and where the opportunity for joint investment, R&D, and supply chain partnerships is most significant.
