India's economy offers scale, growth and opportunity: Sitharaman

India is rapidly becoming a platform for global manufacturing, innovation, and exports, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Wednesday, while inviting Canadian capital to serve both India and world markets. Addressing a high-level Business Roundtable in Toronto, Sitharaman highlighted that reforms, digitalisation, infrastructure investment and targeted policy support were steadily strengthening the environment for long-term investment in India. "India is increasingly not only a major growth market, but a platform for global production, innovation, services and exports. Reforms, digitalisation, infrastructure investment and targeted policy support are steadily strengthening the environment for long-term investment," she said.Stressing that India's reform-led transformation and strong growth trajectory have opened opportunities to build a more resilient, investment-led IndiaCanada economic partnership.

India today stands as the fastest-growing major economy in the world.

India offers a combination that is difficult to match: scale, sustained growth, a young population, expanding consumption and rapidly deepening capital markets.

India’s transformation is structural. Rapid… pic.twitter.com/0RD4Teqe7t

— Nirmala Sitharaman Office (@nsitharamanoffc) August 26, 2026

The roundtable was organised by the Consulate General of India, Toronto, in association with Canada-India Business Council and CII, bringing together business leaders from clean technology, critical minerals, rare earths, energy storage, sustainable infrastructure, agriculture, food processing, automotive, textiles, cybersecurity, biotechnology, AI, asset management, higher education and skills development.
Sitharaman also had separate meetings with Payments Canada president and CEO Susan Hawkins and Wayne Lee, Managing Director and Head, International Banking, CIBC Bank. During the meeting with Lee, Sitharaman highlighted India's reform-led transformation over the past decade, with stronger institutions, a resilient financial sector and Digital Public Infrastructure supporting the country's next phase of growth under the vision of Viksit Bharat.
With bilateral trade in goods and services at around USD 24 billion in 2024 and an ambition to take two-way trade towards USD 70 billion annually by 2030, she emphasised that the opportunity extends well beyond trade.