Piyush Goyal, Canadian counterpart Mary Ng review progress of India-Canada FTA

During the MDTI meeting held in Ottawa on May 8, the Ministers emphasised the solid foundation of the trade and economic relationship between Canada and India and recognized the significant opportunity to deepen bilateral ties and economic partnership.

Minister Mary Ng expressed her support for India as G20 Chair and the priorities pursued by India in the G20 Trade and Investment Working Group. She indicated that she is looking forward to participating in the upcoming G-20 Trade and

Investment Ministerial meeting in India is scheduled to take place in August 2023, a statement said.

India-Canada bilateral trade in goods reached about US$ 8.2 billion in 2022, registering 25% growth compared to 2021. The Ministers also underlined the contribution of the services sector in furthering the bilateral relationship and noted the significant potential for increasing bilateral services trade which stood at about US$6.6 billion in 2022.

The Ministers emphasised enhancing cooperation in sectors such as clean technologies for infrastructure development, critical minerals, electric vehicles and batteries, renewable energy/hydrogen, and AI. The Ministers asked their officials to discuss trade remedies issues of bilateral importance on a regular basis.

They reviewed the progress so far achieved in the India-Canada Free Trade Agreement negotiations in the seven rounds of negotiations so far. They reaffirmed that EPTA would cover, among others, high level commitments in goods, services, investment, rules of origin, sanitary and phytosanitary measures, technical barriers to trade, and dispute settlement, and may also cover others where mutual agreement is reached.

Key outcomes:

The two sides agreed to explore enhanced cooperation through measures such as coordinated investment promotion, information exchange and mutual support between the two parties in near future through a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) preferably in Fall of 2023.

The Ministers agreed on the importance of G2G coordination to promote critical mineral supply chain resiliency and committed to an annual dialogue at the official level on the margins of the Prospectors and Developers Association Conference (PDAC) in Toronto to discuss issues of mutual interest.

Both Ministers agreed to rework and relaunch the Canada-India CEO Forum with renewed focus and a new set of priorities. The CEO Forum could be announced at a mutually-agreed early date. The CEO Forum would be a platform to enhance B2B engagement.

Minister Mary Ng announced that she would lead a Team Canada trade mission to India in October 2023. This will present an opportunity to further the trade and investment ties between the two countries as she is likely to bring a big business delegation for the same.

The Ministers noted the significant movement of professionals and skilled workers, students, and business travellers between the two countries, and its immense contribution to enhancing the bilateral economic partnership and in this context noted the desire for enhanced discussions in the area of migration and mobility.

The Ministers discussed appropriate mechanisms to discuss talent and innovation partnership to strengthen the bilateral innovation ecosystem.

In order to review the progress being made under mechanisms established under the MDTI and regular follow-up, both sides will come up with an annual work plan which would be reviewed and reported on a regular basis.

The Ministers agreed to remain engaged to provide sustained momentum to building linkages and strengthening cooperation across sectors to harness the full potential of the trade and investment relationship between India and Canada.

After the meeting a Joint Statement was also released.

In a tweet, Piyush Goyal said: “Excellent interaction with members of the Indo Canada Chamber of Commerce and Canada India Foundation in Toronto.With India working on various fronts to expand its economy, invited them to help take India-Canada ties on a faster growth trajectory.”

Mary Ng, in a tweet said: “Today, @PiyushGoyal and I hosted a roundtable with Canadian and Indian businesses to hear first-hand how we can make it easier for these companies to work together and to help them succeed. The success of the Canada- India relationship is rooted within the close collaboration and hard work of Indian and Canadian businesses.”

Piyush Goyal said: “Partners in Growth! India-Canada.“Addressed the CEOs Roundtable in Toronto & invited Captains of Industry to invest in India's resilient growth story.”

He also inaugurated the India Pavilion at @SIALCANADA, one of the largest food innovation trade shows in North America.

“Proud to see over 100 Indian entities showcasing the multifaceted aspects of India’s dynamic F&B sector on the global stage,” he tweeted.

(With UNI inputs)