India and Chile took a major step forward in boosting their trade ties by signing the Terms of Reference (ToR) for a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) on May 8, 2025. The ToR was officially signed by Chile’s Ambassador to India, Juan Angulo, and Vimal Anand, Joint Secretary in the Department of Commerce and India’s lead negotiator for the CEPA. Both countries reaffirmed their commitment to deepening their partnership and expressed optimism ahead of the first round of talks, set to take place in New Delhi from May 26 to 30, 2025.

The Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) aims to expand the existing Preferential Trade Agreement (PTA) between India and Chile by covering more sectors such as digital services, investment collaboration, MSMEs and critical minerals. This move is intended to boost economic cooperation and integration between the two countries. India and Chile enjoy a strong strategic partnership and friendly relations. Their bilateral ties have grown steadily over the years, supported by regular high-level visits. They signed a Framework Agreement on Economic Cooperation in January 2005, followed by the PTA in March 2006. Since then, their trade and economic relationship has remained strong and continues to progress.

An expanded Preferential Trade Agreement (PTA) was signed in September 2016 and came into effect on May 16, 2017. In April 2019, both countries agreed to further enhance the PTA, with three rounds of negotiations taking place between 2019 and 2021. To strengthen their economic ties, both sides expressed their interest in negotiating a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) to maximise the potential of their trade and commercial relations. This would help create jobs, attract investments, and promote cooperation and exports, as outlined by the Joint Study Group (JSG) established under their Framework Agreement. The JSG report was completed and signed on April 30, 2024. 

The shared vision between India and Chile was reinforced during the recent State visit of Chile’s President, Gabriel Boric Font, to India from April 1-5, 2025, at the invitation of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Both leaders acknowledged that trade and commerce were pillars of their bilateral ties. They stressed the need to improve the current trade framework to create more development opportunities. In this regard, they noted the signing of the mutually agreed Terms of Reference (ToR). They welcomed the beginning of negotiations for a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) to create a balanced, ambitious and mutually beneficial agreement to deepen economic ties.