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Expressing optimism over India’s exports growth, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal has said that the country's merchandise exports have reached over $380 billion so far this fiscal till March 7 and are expected to reach $410 billion in 2021-22. He added that the country will have a record services exports upward of $240 billion. He also said that India and Canada have formally re-launched negotiations for a free trade agreement, which is officially dubbed as the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA).

About the India-Canada relationship, he said this economic partnership will strengthen efforts to take economic ties to the next level. He said ‘This will help generate jobs, help each other in times of need and work with each other in several international forums...We have over 7,00,000 persons of Indian origin in Canada today, slated to go up to 1.4 million in the next few years....’. He also urged the Canadian minister to be a ‘little more liberal’ while negotiating the trade agreement. The minister also sought investments from Canada in areas like infrastructure and manufacturing.

The Canadian minister Mary Ng has said that huge opportunities are there in India for businesses. She said ‘We already have strong people to people ties’, and added that Canadian businesses have invested about $65 billion in India, which reflects the potential here. She also said ‘I am looking forward for doing more work on this front’. She added that Canada is also pursuing a Foreign Investment Promotion and Protection Agreement (FIPA) with India.