India and South Korea Review CEPA to Boost Trade and Investment Ties

New Delhi, April 20, 2026: Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal held discussions with his South Korean counterpart on revamping the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA), with a focus on boosting bilateral trade, investment flows and supply chain cooperation.

The talks centred on modernising the existing trade framework to better reflect current global economic realities and to unlock new opportunities in sectors such as manufacturing, technology and services.

Officials said both sides reviewed ways to make the agreement more comprehensive and mutually beneficial, particularly by improving market access and easing trade facilitation measures.

The discussions come at a time when India and South Korea are actively working to strengthen their economic partnership amid global supply chain disruptions and shifting trade dynamics.

Both countries also explored avenues to deepen investment cooperation, with a focus on encouraging greater participation of businesses in each other’s markets.The CEPA, which has been in force for several years, is being seen as a key instrument to further expand economic engagement between the two nations.

Recent engagements between trade officials from both sides have already laid the groundwork for upgrading the agreement, with emphasis on reducing trade barriers and enhancing industrial collaboration.

The renewed push for CEPA revamp aligns with broader efforts to increase bilateral trade and diversify supply chains in critical sectors.

Officials indicated that future rounds of discussions will focus on specific sectors such as advanced manufacturing, electronics, green energy and digital technologies.The dialogue reflects a shared intent to elevate the India South Korea economic partnership to a more strategic and future oriented level.

Both sides are also looking at improving investment frameworks to support long term business collaboration and technology exchange.The discussions are part of a wider series of high level engagements aimed at strengthening economic cooperation between New Delhi and Seoul.

With growing complementarities in industrial capabilities, both countries see significant potential for deeper integration in global value chains.Further negotiations are expected to continue in the coming months to finalise updated provisions under the CEPA framework.