New Delhi: With the diplomatic row between India and Canada escalating following Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s explosive allegation that New Delhi had a hand in the killing of Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in the province of British Columbia in June this year, social media has been filled with messages to boycott Canadian companies’ products back home.
“It's time to Boycott Canadian products they are openly supporting Terrorists in India,” read the X handle of @Shefali4India. “As an Indian, I'm offended by the accusations of the Canadian government. I urge all my fellow Indians to boycott Canadian products and Indians living in Canada to urgently leave Canada and come back to our motherland, India. Jai Hind,” wrote @arsaljafri on the same social media platform.
“All Canadian goods, products and brands must be permanently banned in #India Each and every citizen of India should boycott them. Terrorism must not be supported at all,” said @Believer2202. So, what are the Canadian products that Indian consumers avail of? How many Canadian companies are operating in India? What are Canada’s investments in India?
According to the Indian High Commission in Canada, bilateral trade in goods between India and Canada amounted to $10.50 billion in 2022. India's exports stood at $6.40 billion and India's imports at $4.10 billion. The bilateral trade in services in 2021 was $5.88 billion. “More than 600 Canadian companies have a presence in India and more than 1,000 companies are actively pursuing business in the Indian market,” the Indian High Commission website states.
India’s imports from Canada include pulses, newsprint, wood pulp, asbestos, potash, iron scrap, copper, minerals and industrial chemicals. But what is adversely impacting Canada in the face of the diplomatic row is the suspension of the Early Progress Trade Agreement (EPTA) talks, a first step towards a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) with India. India has said that the talks have been “paused”. These talks were suspended earlier this month even before Trudeau made that allegation against India after visiting New Delhi for the G20 Summit.
Also read: US spy agencies provided intelligence to Canada on Khalistani activist Nijjar killing: NYT
Reports suggest that India decided to pause the trade talks because Canada is allowing its land to be used by subversive elements. Since India’s imports from Canada can be substituted from any other friendlier country, New Delhi does not have to rely solely on Ottawa for key commodities.
According to industry estimates, the CEPA could have boosted India-Canada bilateral trade by as much as $6.5 billion, yielding a GDP gain of $3.8 billion to $5.9 billion for Canada by 2035. Now, if you are an Indian consumer looking to buy grocery items in a supermarket, what kind of Canadian products are you likely to see?
For one, McCain’s frozen food products. The company is one of the leading producers of French fries and potato specialities. McCain is located in Florenceville, New Brunswick, Canada. It is a global leader in the field of the frozen food industry. Then there is the café chain Tim Hortons. The company, which entered India in August 2022, has opened its stores in Delhi NCR, Ludhiana, Chandigarh, Bhatinda and Mumbai till now. The company plans to open 120 stores across different states of India by 2026
Canada is also one of the largest suppliers of masur daal (red lentils) to India. India imports around four to five lakh tonnes of masur daal from Canada annually. Masur dal is the second cheapest lentil after moong and tur daal. That is why the diplomatic row has got the daal millers and traders in India worried.
Do you order food from Zomato? Well, you are, in a way, buying a Canadian product. The Canadian Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) holds a 2.42 per cent stake in the food delivery giant. And that’s not all. According to the Indian High Commission in Canada, Canadian pension funds have cumulatively invested over $55 billion in India and are increasingly viewing India as a favourable destination for investments.
The CPPIB also holds a 1.76 per cent stake in the UPI app PayTm and is currently valued at Rs 948.10 crore. And if you are having goods delivered to your home via supply and logistics company Delhivery, there is a Canadian hand in it. The CPPIB has a 6 per cent stake in Delhivery.
Buying beauty products from Nykaa? Well, you have got a bit of Canada on your skin. The CPPIB holds 4,19,38,14 equity shares in Nykaa or 1.47 per cent of the total stake. Then again, how dependent are you on your mobile phone? Hundred per cent you would say. The signal you receive on that phone might have a Canadian tone to it. After all, the CPPIB has a 2.18 per cent stake in Indus Towers, India’s largest mobile tower installation company. In India, three out of every five calls made are through an Indus site, the company claims.
And if you are depositing your money in banks like Kotak Mahindra and ICICI, well, part of it is being secured by Canada. The CPPIB holds a 2.68 per cent stake in Kotak Mahindra Bank while the stake in ICICI Bank is nearly $10 million. These are but a few examples. Other Indian companies in which the CPPIB has invested include Infosys, Wipro, Flipkart, Acko and Byju’s.
Apart from the CPPIB-invested companies in India, other major Canadian companies operating in India include Air Canada, Apotex Pharmachem India, CGI Information Systems and Management Consultants, and Bank of Nova Scotia.
