India, Canada sign commercial deals as both aim to seal trade pact by 2026

Indian and Canadian entities on Friday signed a series of commercial agreements and memoranda of understanding in the presence of Canada's Minister of International Trade, Maninder Sidhu, ANI reported.

The agreements were signed during the Canada-India Business Ceremony in Karnataka, as the two countries stepped up commercial engagement alongside negotiations for a proposed Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA), which they aim to conclude by the end of 2026, according to a Ministry of Commerce and Industry presentation cited in the report.

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The latest round of CEPA negotiations took place in Ottawa from October 5 to 9, covering market access for goods and services, investment, rules of origin, intellectual property rights and trade remedies.

The next round is scheduled in New Delhi in early November.

Bilateral trade between India and Canada reached $7.96 billion in FY26, according to government data.

Official estimates project that the proposed agreement could increase bilateral trade by $4.4 billion to $6.5 billion and generate a gross domestic product gain of $3.8 billion to $5.9 billion for Canada by 2035.

Speaking at a business reception in Bengaluru on Thursday as part of the Team Canada Trade Mission to India, Sidhu highlighted opportunities for collaboration in artificial intelligence, quantum computing, aviation infrastructure, digital innovation, sustainability and smart mobility, as per the report.

He added that India was a market Canada could not afford to ignore as it sought to double its non-US exports over the next decade, citing the country's annual economic growth of around 7%, population of 1.4 billion and potential to become the world's third-largest economy.

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Sidhu also pointed to the presence of Canadian companies in India, including Kinaxis, OpenText, CGI, CAE, Magellan Aerospace, MDA Space and BCE Global Tech.

He cited Fairfax Financial's investments in Bengaluru airport and the work of Canadian firms Genetec, Transoft Solutions and RBH Access at the airport as examples of existing commercial ties.