THEBUSINESSBTES BUREAU
MUMBAI, FEBRUARY 27, 2026
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney on Friday underscored India’s
emergence as the world’s fastest-growing major economy and signalled Ottawa’s
intent to expand economic engagement, positioning his first official visit as a
catalyst for a more pragmatic and future-oriented bilateral partnership.
Posting a video of his arrival in Mumbai on X, Carney said, “India is the
world’s fastest-growing major economy. We just arrived in Mumbai to meet with
business leaders — and forge partnerships that will unlock new opportunities
for Canadian workers and businesses.” He was accompanied by his wife, Diana Fox
Carney, and received at the airport by Maharashtra’s Minister of Protocol and
Marketing, Jaykumar Rawal.
The Mumbai leg of the visit is focused on high-level business diplomacy,
with the Canadian leader interacting with Indian and Canadian CEOs, financial
sector stakeholders, innovators, academics and representatives of major
Canadian pension funds that have significantly expanded their footprint in
India’s infrastructure and financial markets.
Welcoming the visit, the Ministry of External Affairs described it as an
important step in consolidating India–Canada ties, highlighting shared
democratic values, strong diaspora linkages and growing sectoral
complementarities as the foundation of the relationship.
Carney will travel to New Delhi on Sunday for delegation-level talks with
Prime Minister Narendra Modi at Hyderabad House on March 2. The discussions
will review the trajectory of the India–Canada Strategic Partnership and are
expected to prioritise trade and investment flows, energy cooperation, critical
minerals, agriculture, education, research and innovation, along with mobility
and people-to-people exchanges. The leaders will also engage with industry at
the India–Canada CEOs Forum.
The visit comes at a delicate yet opportune phase in bilateral relations,
with both sides seeking to restore momentum through calibrated engagement.
Two-way trade reached $30.8 billion in 2024, making India Canada’s
seventh-largest trading partner, while the two governments have set an
ambitious target of $50 billion by 2030.
