Ng won't confirm status of 'Team Canada' mission to India amid strained relations

Trade Minister Mary Ng has spent the past four months talking up a major visit to India designed to boost Canadian exports to the world's most populous country.

Trade Minister Mary Ng has spent the past four months talking up a major visit to India designed to boost Canadian exports to the world's most populous country.

But now she is not saying whether the trip is going ahead, raising questions about a halted trade deal amid frosty relations between Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his counterpart in New Delhi.

"I'm excited to do lots of trade missions to the Indo-Pacific," Ng said Wednesday in London, Ont., when asked about the status of the trip.

Ng is scheduled to lead a five-day "Team Canada" trade mission to Mumbai with leaders from Canadian businesses and provinces, leaving on Oct. 9.

The trade mission, the first in Asia under Canada's Indo-Pacific strategy, is focused on boosting Canadian clean-technology companies as a way to help meet India's need for renewable energy.

The Trade Commissioner Service says the trip would also seek to increase trade in sectors such as automotive, agriculture and value-added food, digital technology, infrastructure and life sciences.

It would also involve networking with Indian business leaders, briefings from senior officials, and key industry players and roundtables with local industry and experts.