11 September 2007

Canada stepping up trade talks with Asian nations

This article is excerpted from the 11 September 2007 edition of “The Journal of Commerce”.

Canada, with a comprehensive transportation and infrastructure gateway strategy in place, now must take itself to a new competitive level through trade agreements and foreign investment protection pacts with Asian nations, the country’s trade minister said Monday.

David Emerson, federal minister of international trade… announced that Canada and China’s Ministry of Communications are negotiating a memorandum of understanding to cooperate on gateways.

Canada is also pursuing trade liberalization and investment protection agreements with other nations in the region, he said.

“The economic center of gravity is rapidly shifting to Asia, but we are playing catch up,” Emerson said….

The $33-billion Building Canada infrastructure plan, which includes a national policy framework for strategic gateways and corridors and the Asia-Pacific Gateway and Corridor Initiative as its centerpiece, “is part of the vision for trade and prosperity,” Emerson stated….

In addition to the planned agreement with Beijing, Emerson said Ottawa is also pursuing trade liberalization agreements with South Korea and Singapore, and foreign investment protection agreements with India and China.

Canada has started investment protection negotiations with Vietnam and a similar agreement is under negotiation with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)….