Chinese President Xi Jinping (right) shakes hands with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to the G20 Summit on September 4, 2016 in Hangzhou, China. (Photo : Getty Images)
While the new U.S. President has put Canada in quite a difficult position, Canada's International Trade Minister says that "sitting down with China is the right thing to do" as it seeks to open its borders to more trade. If successful, enhanced economic relations will be an unprecedented move in China-Canada relations.
The Trudeau government has already signaled its interest in talking free trade with China.
"In a world where people are talking about uncertainty and protectionism, Canada represents 0.5 percent of the world population and we represent 2.2 percent of global trade. So we have to be looking at markets, not only for today but prepare markets for years to come," said International Trade Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne.
Maintaining a Confident Front
While still unsure of how Trump will be dealing with U.S.-Canada relations, Trudeau and his cabinet are "maintaining a confident front."
Trump's protectionist agenda on international trade might include a tariff on all goods crossing into the U.S. A client note from the National Bank of Canada indicated a proposed 10 percent border adjustment tax, which will potentially cause Canada's total exports to drop by 9 percent.
"We share the largest unguarded border in the world, we have $2.4 billion in trade of goods and services every day, we have 35 states in the U.S. which have Canada as their major export market, we have nine million jobs in the U.S. which depend on trade with Canada," said the trade minister.
Champagne shared that he reminded U.S. officials about the "integrated economy and the prosperity" during their visit at Davos.
While the Trudeau government is still uncertain of how to deal with the U.S.-Canada relations under the new administration, it is indeed a wise decision to look for other partners who are also willing to talk enhanced trade.
