India’s commerce minister to visit Canada, hold talks on trade agreement (EPTA)
India’s Commerce and Industry Minister, Piyush Goyal, is scheduled to visit Canada in the coming months to hold talks on a potential Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) between the two countries. The CEPA, which would be known as the India-Canada Economic Partnership Agreement (EPTA), is aimed at boosting bilateral trade and investment.
The talks between Goyal and Canadian officials will focus on various aspects of the proposed agreement, including trade in goods and services, investment, and intellectual property rights. The two countries have been negotiating the EPTA since 2017, and have held several rounds of talks since then.
India and Canada have a strong economic partnership, with bilateral trade between the two countries reaching $8.4 billion in 2019. However, there is significant potential for growth, particularly in areas such as agriculture, pharmaceuticals, and information technology.
The proposed EPTA would provide a framework for increasing bilateral trade and investment, as well as enhancing economic cooperation between the two countries. It would also help to address some of the issues that have hindered trade between India and Canada in the past, such as tariff barriers and regulatory differences.
