India and Canada have begun the fourth round of negotiations for the proposed Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) in New Delhi, as both sides seek to boost bilateral trade to 50 billion US dollars by 2030. The five-day talks, which began yesterday, will continue until September 18 and cover key areas including trade in goods and services, rules of origin, and technical trade barriers, among others.
Bilateral trade between both the countries declined 8.22 percent to 7.95 billion US dollars in 2025-26 from 8.66 billion US dollars in 2024-25. India’s major exports to Canada include pharmaceuticals, iron and steel, seafood, cotton garments, electronics and chemicals, while key imports include pulses, pearls and semi-precious stones, coal, fertilisers, paper and crude oil. India’s main services sector exports to Canada include telecommunications, computer and information services, and other business services. Canada is also home to more than 425,000 Indian students and a large Indian-origin community. The third round of CEPA negotiations was held in Ottawa in July.
