Canada sends largest trade mission to India in 30 years

Canadian Trade Minister Maninder Sidhu will lead nearly 300 business delegates to Mumbai and Bengaluru to strengthen bilateral trade and investment. The mission comes as India and Canada pursue a comprehensive economic partnership agreement, targeting $70 billion in bilateral trade by 2030

Washington: Indian-origin Canadian International Trade Minister Maninder Sidhu will lead nearly 300 business delegates to Mumbai and Bengaluru from Monday in what Ottawa calls its largest trade delegation to India in over 30 years, as the two countries push to conclude a trade agreement by the end of the year.

The Team Canada Trade Mission will run from October 12 to 17, Global Affairs Canada said. The delegates will “connect with Indian decision makers, key industry players and potential clients to expand commercial relations and build new partnerships that create good-paying jobs at home,” the statement said.

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“Nearly 300 Canadian business delegates are joining the Team Canada Trade Mission I am leading to India next week to secure new opportunities for our businesses and workers in one of the world’s fastest-growing markets,” Sidhu said. “By matching Canadian expertise in sectors like aerospace, agri-food and clean technology with India’s growing demand, we will diversify our trade and attract new investment. This is how we will more than double our trade with India to $70 billion by 2030,” he added. The delegation includes businesses from the aerospace and space, clean technologies and energy transition, information and communication technologies, life sciences and agri-food sectors, according to the statement.

The Trade Commissioner Service has also listed forestry and wood products among the mission’s priority sectors, with programming that includes business-to-business meetings, site visits and briefings by Canadian trade commissioners. The mission follows the fifth round of negotiations on the Canada-India Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA), held in Ottawa from October 5 to 9.

Neither government has released an outcome of that round. Sidhu met Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal on the sidelines of the G20 Trade Ministers’ Meeting in Milwaukee on October 1, where the two reviewed progress in the talks. For India, the mission comes as New Delhi negotiates with several partners at once, including the United States, amid strained ties with Washington over tariffs and India’s purchases of Russian oil.

Canada, which faces its own trade friction with the Trump administration, says it aims to double exports to markets beyond the United States over the next decade. Two-way goods and services trade between Canada and India totalled C$30.4 billion in 2025, according to the Canadian government.

Canadian merchandise exports to India were C$3.9 billion, led by vegetables, mineral fuels and oils and wood pulp, while merchandise imports from India stood at C$9.7 billion, mainly precious stones and metals, machinery and pharmaceutical products. Canadian direct investment in India reached C$11.4 billion in 2025, while Indian direct investment in Canada totalled C$9.7 billion, the statement said.

Canadian pension funds and asset managers reported about C$108 billion in total exposure to India in 2025, according to Export Development Canada. Team Canada trade missions are government-led business delegations organised by Global Affairs Canada’s Trade Commissioner Service to help Canadian companies, particularly small and medium-sized enterprises, enter foreign markets.

The CEPA talks were relaunched after Prime Minister Mark Carney and PM Modi moved to reset ties that had deteriorated sharply in 2023.