New Delhi [India], September 21 (ANI): India and Canada have agreed to fast-track negotiations for a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA), with the next round of talks scheduled to begin on October 5, Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said, adding that the next 90 days could be a 'defining period' in bilateral relations.

Goyal said he concluded the fourth round of negotiations for the proposed trade agreement with his Canadian counterpart, Minister of International Trade Maninder Sidhu, in Mumbai on Friday.

'I have concluded the fourth round of negotiations for the Canada trade deal with my counterpart Mr Maninder Sidhu in Mumbai on Friday,' Goyal said during a media interaction.

Describing the discussions as productive, Goyal said both countries had decided to accelerate the pace of negotiations.

'Very productive discussions and both sides have resolved to fast track negotiations, in view of which our team is now slated to go for the fifth round,' he said.

The minister said the fifth round would begin on October 5 and noted that the pace of the negotiations was increasing.

'Fifth of October. So you can see that as the progress is taking shape, the speed of negotiations with Canada is also improving,' Goyal said.

Pointing to the wider improvement in engagement between New Delhi and Ottawa, Goyal added, 'Let's see, the next 90 days should be a very defining period in the Canada-India relationship.'

The latest round follows a renewed push by the two countries to conclude a comprehensive trade agreement. Canada had said ahead of Sidhu's September 18-19 visit to Mumbai that three rounds of the fresh CEPA negotiations had been completed and that both sides shared the objective of concluding negotiations by the end of 2026.

India and Canada have discussed a comprehensive trade pact for more than a decade. Negotiations were formally relaunched in March 2022, with the two sides also pursuing an Early Progress Trade Agreement as an interim step. Nine negotiating rounds were held between 2022 and 2023 before the process was paused in August 2023 amid a period of strain in bilateral relations.

Trade engagement gathered momentum again in 2025. The two countries subsequently launched a fresh CEPA process, with Goyal and Sidhu signing the Terms of Reference on March 2, 2026, during Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney's visit to India. Both governments committed to seeking conclusion of the negotiations by the end of 2026.

Bilateral trade between India and Canada stood at around USD 8 billion in FY 2025-26, with India exporting goods worth USD 4.67 billion and importing USD 3.28 billion, according to the Commerce Ministry. (ANI)