FICCI, Business Council of Canada announce partnership to connect business leaders
May 10, 2023
Toronto [Canada], May 10 : The Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) and the Business Council of Canada (BCC) on Wednesday announced a new partnership to connect business leaders from both countries, promote bilateral economic ties, and enhance cooperation as partners in the Indo-Pacific region.
"India's bilateral relationship with Canada holds great potential, especially in areas like energy, science, biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, and infrastructure development," said FICCI President Subhrakant Panda.
"I am confident that our partnership will not only bolster business-to-business ties between the two countries but also lift the trajectory of bilateral trade," he added.
The two organisations used the occasion to call on both governments to continue to work on an Early Progress Trade Agreement with the goal of successfully concluding negotiations by the end of the year. In addition, they announced that a Canadian delegation of chief executive officers (CEOs) will travel to New Delhi for meetings with Indian business leaders.
"At a time of global volatility, it is crucial for democracies to work together to create jobs, secure supply chains and drive economic growth that sustains our quality of life and benefits all people," said BCC President and CEO Goldy Hyder. "A trade agreement would not only send the right signal to businesses in both countries to increase trade and investment, but it would mark an important milestone in Canada's recently released Indo-Pacific Strategy."
On the concluding day at the CEOs Roundtable organised by FICCI and BCC in Toronto, Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal, Canada's Minister of International Trade, Export, Small Business and Economic Development Mary Ng; FICCI President Subhrakant Panda; and Secretary General Shailesh Pathak and BCC President and CEO Goldy Hyder interacted with the Indian and Canadian Business Leaders.
The total bilateral trade between India and Canada amounted to USD 6.8 billion for FY2021-22. Canada exported USD 3.1 billion worth of products to India and imported USD 3.7 billion worth of products from India. In addition, Canadian portfolio and institutional investment into India is currently valued at Canadian dollar 70 billion (USD 51.7 billion).
