India 'Next One That We’re Going To Get Done,' Says Canada Trade Minister On FTA

Canada’s trade minister has signalled that India could be the next free trade deal Ottawa concludes. Negotiations on a comprehensive economic partnership agreement could wrap up by next month, ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s planned Canada visit. The comments came after Ottawa announced the successful conclusion of negotiations towards free trade agreements with ASEAN and the Philippines.

Canada’s Minister of International Trade Maninder Sidhu expressed confidence that India would be “the next one that we’re going to get done,” in a reference to the ongoing CEPA talks. The sixth round of negotiations began last week during Sidhu’s three-day visit to India.

The timeline matters because Ottawa and New Delhi are working to finish talks before Modi’s scheduled trip to Canada in the second week of December. The expected focus of that visit is an announcement on the conclusion of the free trade agreement negotiations.

Manila Remarks

Sidhu made the remarks in Manila.

“India will be the next one that we’re going to get done,” he told reporters there while accompanying Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney to the ASEAN Summit.

He had travelled to Manila from India after spending three days there last week. During that visit, Sidhu held a bilateral meeting with Minister of Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal in New Delhi as the sixth round of CEPA negotiations commenced.

Sidhu also expressed optimism that the two sides would be able to “lock down” the agreement by next month. That deadline was set by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Carney for concluding the negotiations.

Modi is scheduled to visit Canada in the second week of December. The focus of the trip is expected to be the announcement of the conclusion of the free trade agreement talks.

Business Outreach

Sidhu linked the push to business demand. He said Canada had not approached the India deal at random and had consulted businesses, companies and chambers of commerce on the markets they wanted access to. During his India trip, Sidhu also took part in the Confederation of Indian Industry Partnership Summit in Visakhapatnam.

A statement from Global Affairs Canada said the summit “reinforced Canada’s commitment to diversifying its commercial relationships with international partners and creating new opportunities for Canadian businesses and workers”. The objective of the CEPA is to double bilateral trade to CA$ 70 billion by 2030.

The statement added: “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. Canada is a trusted and reliable partner, and building closer economic ties with India will help create better jobs here at home,” Sidhu said.