India and Canada on Monday, 6 October 2026, launched the fifth round of negotiations for their proposed Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) in Ottawa, with both sides aiming to finalise the landmark trade pact before the close of 2026. The five-day session, led by the chief negotiators of the two countries, is scheduled to run until 9 October.

Where the Talks Stand

The previous — fourth — round concluded in New Delhi on 18 September, with officials signalling a push for faster progress toward a final agreement. The Ottawa round marks a notable acceleration in the negotiating calendar, with both delegations under political pressure to deliver a concluded deal by year-end.

Notably, Canada's Trade Minister Maninder Sidhu is scheduled to visit New Delhi later this month accompanied by a 300-member business delegation — a concrete signal of Ottawa's commercial intent ahead of a potential summit-level signing.

Modi-Carney Summit Set the Deadline

The year-end target was jointly set by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Canadian counterpart Prime Minister Mark Carney during their bilateral summit in New Delhi in March 2026. The two leaders agreed to deepen collaboration in the energy and critical minerals sectors alongside the broader trade framework.

According to the joint statement issued after that summit, the leaders expressed confidence that a comprehensive trade framework would serve as 'a durable economic anchor' for the partnership, with a shared aspiration of expanding bilateral trade to CAD 70 billion (approximately ₹4.65 lakh crore) by 2030. Prime Minister Modi is reportedly expected to visit Canada around December 2026, when the two countries plan to conclude and potentially sign the final deal.

Trade on the Table: Key Sectors and Numbers

India-Canada bilateral trade in goods stood at $8.66 billion in 2024-25, with India's exports to Canada touching $4.22 billion. India's principal exports include pharmaceutical products, machinery parts, iron and steel articles, electronic goods, organic chemicals, jewellery, gems and precious stones, garments, seafood, engineering goods, and auto parts.

Canada's major exports to India span pulses, fertilisers, mineral fuels, wood pulp, gems and precious stones, aircraft parts, machinery components, and iron and aluminium scrap. India's IT sector remains the primary contributor to services exports to Canada — a segment expected to gain considerably from a formal CEPA framework that eases market access and professional mobility.

The Diplomatic Reset That Made This Possible

The current negotiating momentum is itself a product of a significant diplomatic reset. Prime Minister Carney's visit to India earlier in 2026 signalled a sharp departure from the trajectory of his predecessor Justin Trudeau, whose tenure saw India-Canada ties deteriorate to their lowest point in decades. The Trudeau government faced sustained criticism from New Delhi for what Indian officials described as tolerance — and at times tacit encouragement — of Sikh separatist activity on Canadian soil as part of domestic electoral calculations.

The restoration of high-level engagement under Carney has since opened space for substantive economic negotiations that had stalled during the diplomatic freeze. This round of CEPA talks is both a trade exercise and a geopolitical signal that the bilateral relationship has moved beyond that impasse.

What Comes Next

With the 9 October Ottawa round set to address outstanding chapters, and the Trade Minister's high-profile delegation visit to New Delhi to follow, the pace of engagement suggests both governments are serious about meeting the 2026 deadline. Industry observers will watch for progress on pharmaceutical market access, critical minerals investment frameworks, and IT services liberalisation — the three areas widely regarded as the most commercially sensitive in the negotiations.