VISAKHAPATNAM, India (Diya TV) — Canada and India have begun the sixth round of negotiations for a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement, with both governments aiming to finish talks by year’s end. Canadian International Trade Minister Maninder Sidhu said Thursday he hoped the countries could complete the deal before Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s expected visit to Canada next month.
Sidhu spoke at the Confederation of Indian Industry’s Partnership Summit in Visakhapatnam, where he met Indian Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal. The leaders discussed a “balanced” agreement that would expand market access, trade and investment. Their talks continue after five previous rounds; neither side has announced a final agreement.
Energy and natural resources are central to the negotiations. Sidhu said Canada is expanding liquefied natural gas capacity and could become the world’s fifth-largest LNG exporter within five years. He also pointed to cooperation on uranium and critical minerals, which India needs for energy production, manufacturing and electric-vehicle supply chains. The two countries signed a separate C$2.6 billion uranium supply agreement in March.
The ministers also discussed investment, artificial intelligence and data infrastructure. A CEPA could establish rules for a broader range of commercial ties, including goods, services, investment, agriculture, digital trade and worker mobility. Canada and India have set a goal of doubling annual two-way trade to C$70 billion by 2030.
Investment already flows in both directions. Canadian institutional investors and pension funds have invested more than $100 billion in India, Sidhu said. Indian firms, meanwhile, have expanded across Canada. A 2026 report by the business groups CII and CIBC found that nearly 50 Indian companies reported close to C$11 billion in Canadian investments and more than 33,000 direct jobs. The surveyed firms also reported about C$1.1 billion in research and development spending.
Those figures come from companies surveyed for the report, not a complete census of every Indian business operating in Canada. The report said the surveyed firms had operations in eight of Canada’s 10 provinces and worked in sectors including technology, life sciences, manufacturing and mining.
The trade push follows a March agreement between Modi and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney to launch CEPA negotiations and target a deal by the end of 2026. Canada reported C$30.4 billion in two-way goods and services trade with India in 2025. Completing the agreement before Modi’s expected visit would meet the governments’ timetable, but negotiators still need to resolve outstanding issues.
