India and Canada on Monday took a step towards strengthening their economic ties as Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Canadian PM Mark J Carney agreed to expand bilateral trade to $50 billion by 2030 and accelerate negotiations on the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) to advance trade-based partnership. The two leaders held bilateral talks at Hyderabad House in New Delhi, where they discussed critical minerals cooperation, uranium procurement, exchange of terms of reference for CEPA, enhancing maritime domain awareness and establishment of defense dialogue.Our target is to take the trade to $50 billion by 2030. Our priority is to unleash the full potential of economic cooperation. Therefore, we have decided to finalize the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement soon. This will create new investment and employment opportunities in both the countries. Canadian pension funds have invested $100 billion in India. This is a symbol of his deep belief in India’s growth story.
Speaking after the talks, PM Modi stressed that economic cooperation will drive the next phase of relations between the two countries. PM Modi said, “Today, we discussed transforming this vision into a next-level partnership. We aim to take trade to $50 billion by 2030. Unlocking the full potential of economic cooperation is our priority. Therefore, we have decided to finalize a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement soon.”He also said that the proposed agreement will create new opportunities in sectors of both the economies.“This will create new investment and employment opportunities in both countries. Canadian pension funds have invested $100 billion in India.” This is a symbol of his deep belief in India’s growth story.”PM Modi said both sides will also interact with business leaders later in the day, adding that their recommendations will help shape the future economic roadmap.Several MoUs were exchanged in the presence of both the leaders. Canadian International Trade Minister Maninder Sidhu and Union Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal exchanged documents related to the terms of reference of CEPA and the declaration of intent on the Joint Pulse Protein Center of Excellence.In a separate set of agreements, Canadian Foreign Minister Anita Anand and Jaishankar exchanged several MoUs covering critical minerals cooperation, promoting the use of renewable energy and cultural cooperation. Another trilateral MoU involving India, Canada and Australia on cooperation in technology and innovation was also exchanged.Recalling his previous conversation with Carney at the G7 meeting in Canada, Modi also said, “There are very few people in the world whose CV includes central banking leadership in two countries. Since our first meeting, our relationship has been energetic, mutual trust and positivity have blossomed.”The visit is being seen as an important step towards normalizing India-Canada relations, with both sides emphasizing trade, investment and long-term economic cooperation.