Issue link: http://clhia.uberflip.com/i/821274
9 India Canada's trade relationship with India is the third fastest growing in Asia. While slow, liberalization of the Indian economy is ongoing and the recent financial sector reforms send a positive signal of increased openness. Unfortunately, there remain a number of challenges for Canadian companies seeking to expand their operations in India. Regulatory transparency and predictability remain a significant concern and an FTA with India would help alleviate these concerns and provide some predictably to the long- term nature of the relationship. Unfortunately, bilateral negotiations are not moving quickly and a renewed focus is required to help promote these negotiations. NAFTA The North American Free Trade Agreement has been of significant benefit to all three parties. Since its ratification over 20 years ago, trilateral trade has quadrupled from $297 billion to over $1.4 trillion. Canadian life and health insurers are supportive of the existing agreement and are ready to work with the Canadian government to maintain our competitive advantage in the North American market. TiSA The Trade in Services Agreement (TiSA), which represents approximately 70 percent of the world trade in services, marks an important step in the revitalization of the multilateral trading system. Canadian financial services firms are supportive of the TiSA and its attempts to update rules in several key areas such as financial services, licensing, professional services, e-commerce and the temporary movement of business professionals. Most recently, the pace of the negotiations has lagged and there are concerns that the new Administration in the U.S. will not be supportive of a plurilateral agreement. Given the importance of services to the global economy, it is crucial that the Canadian government continue to be a strong supporter of an ambitious and timely TiSA agreement. Recommendation 3: Canada should continue to make free trade agreements a priority. Canadian officials should continue to work with their trade partners to ensure that ongoing negotiations such as the TiSA and the Canada- India FTA maintain momentum. In all cases, these agreements should include a significant and robust financial services component.