CANADA ECONOMICS

NAFTA

THE GLOBE AND MAIL. REUTERS. MAY 7, 2018. NAFTA talks enter critical week with U.S. still pushing hard line
ANTHONY ESPOSITO, WASHINGTON

Talks to update the NAFTA trade deal enter a make-or-break week on Monday, as senior Canadian, U.S. and Mexican officials seek to resolve an impasse in key areas before elections in Mexico and the United States complicate the process.

Discussions in Washington will centre on rules of origin governing what per centage of a car needs to be built in the North American Free Trade Agreement region to avoid tariffs, the pact’s dispute-resolution mechanism and U.S. demands for a sunset clause that could automatically kill the deal after five years.

U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer warned last week that if the talks took too long, approval by the Republican-controlled Congress may be on “thin ice.” The aim is to complete a vote during the “lame-duck” period before a new Congress is seated after November’s congressional elections.

Sources close to the talks suggest there is a creeping feeling of uncertainty and pessimism going into the new round because of gridlock on the most critical issues.

Mexican Economy Minister Ildefonso Guajardo, who is set to meet Lighthizer and Canadian Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland, said unless a deal in principle were agreed by mid-May there was almost no chance the current U.S. Congress could vote on it.

“The problem is that the remaining 20 per cent is highly complex and strategic to do. It could even be more difficult than the 80 per cent that has already been done,” he told El Heraldo newspaper in an interview published on Monday.

Mexico holds its presidential election on July 1 and the front-runner, leftist Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, says he wants a hand in redrafting NAFTA if he wins.

At the heart of the NAFTA revamp is U.S. President Donald Trump’s desire to retool rules for the automotive sector in order to try to bring jobs and investment back north from lower-cost Mexico. Despite months of talks on the issue, the sides remain far apart.

Guajardo said if a deal could not be reached, “we would be operating what some analysts have called ‘Zombie NAFTA’ ... (one) that isn’t dead and isn’t modernized”.

Mexico’s main auto sector lobby has described the latest U.S. demands, which include raising the North American content to 75 per cent from the current 62.5 per cent over a period of four years for light vehicles, as “not acceptable.”

Flavio Volpe, president of Canada’s Automotive Parts Manufacturers’ Association, predicted “a potentially stressful set of meetings when we pick this back up.”

The U.S. proposal also would require that 40 per cent of the value of light-duty passenger vehicles and 45 per cent for pickup trucks be built in areas with wages of $16 (12 pounds) per hour or higher.

That is seen as a hard pill to swallow for Mexico, where the Ann Arbor, Michigan-based Center for Automotive Research has estimated auto assembly workers on average earn under $6 an hour, and workers at auto parts plants on average earn less than $3 an hour.

BUREAUCRATIC NIGHTMARE

Critics also say it would create a bureaucratic nightmare of paperwork.

Talks to renegotiate NAFTA started last August to fulfil a campaign pledge by Trump to bring manufacturing jobs back to the United States.

Nine months later, the most troublesome issues remain open. The United States has stuck with a proposed sunset clause for the new deal, which would mean the agreement would need to be renewed every five years, a move that critics say would create huge uncertainty for businesses.

Another contentious U.S. proposal is to repatriate dispute resolution to the domestic legal system from international tribunals. Both Canada and Mexico oppose that measure, and so does U.S. business.

Asked if an agreement were possible this week, a Mexican source close to the talks said: “The possibility is there, but it will depend on whether the United States is flexible.”

Trump has frequently said he would pull out of NAFTA if a better deal was not possible, although he has sounded more positive about the deal in recent weeks.

It is unclear where the United States will give ground to win a quick deal. The Trump administration has embraced confrontational policies in its dealings on trade.

REUTERS. MAY 7, 2018. C$ dips vs stronger greenback as NAFTA talks enter key week

TORONTO (Reuters) - The Canadian dollar weakened against its U.S. counterpart on Monday as the greenback broadly rose and talks to update the NAFTA trade deal entered a make-or-break week.

Ministers from Canada, the United States and Mexico meet in Washington on Monday to discuss the North American Free Trade Agreement, and will seek to resolve an impasse in key areas before elections in Mexico and the United States complicate the process.

The U.S. dollar .DXY climbed back towards its highest level in 2018 as investors continued to bet that rising interest rates in the United States would boost the greenback.

At 9:19 a.m. EDT (1319 GMT), the Canadian dollar CAD=D4 was trading 0.2 percent lower at C$1.2868 to the greenback, or 77.71 U.S. cents.

The currency traded in a range of C$1.2840 to C$1.2890. It hit a one-month low on Friday at C$1.2918.

The loonie lost ground on Monday even as the price of oil, one of Canada’s major exports, rose to its highest since late 2014, boosted by fresh troubles for Venezuelan oil company PDVSA and a looming decision on whether the United States will re-impose sanctions on Iran.

U.S. crude CLc1 prices were up 1.2 percent at $70.54 a barrel.

The world’s growing economies will have to find ways to cope with an end of central bank stimulus, said Bank of Canada Deputy Governor Timothy Lane.

Canadian government bond prices were mixed across a flatter yield curve, with the two-year CA2YT=RR down 0.5 Canadian cent to yield 1.913 percent and the 10-year CA10YT=RR rising 7 Canadian cents to yield 2.320 percent.

Canada’s jobs report for April is due on Friday.

Reporting by Fergal Smith; Editing by David Gregorio

BLOOMBERG. 7 May 2018. Politics. A Nafta Deal in May? Negotiators Will Try, But It Won't Be Easy
By Eric Martin  and Josh Wingrove

• U.S. push stymied by demand on Mexican auto worker wages
• Negotiators meet this week as contentious issues remain

Cabinet-level negotiators from the three Nafta nations meet again in Washington this week to attempt a breakthrough on the trade deal. It won’t be easy.

Several contentious issues remain unresolved after more than eight months of talks between the U.S., Mexico and Canada to renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement. Discussions resume Monday for what U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer, Mexican Economy Minister Ildefonso Guajardo and Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland hope to be the home stretch of negotiations for a deal this month.

Despite insisting that he wants to secure a deal in the coming weeks, Lighthizer hasn’t shown signs of softening on proposals that Canada and Mexico see as damaging to their interests. Guajardo and Freeland, meanwhile, have pledged to stand their ground.

“You can’t say to the other side of the table, ‘You give us everything we want, and by the way the clock is ticking, so you only have 24 hours to do it,’” said Carla Hills, the former U.S. Trade Representative who negotiated Nafta under President George H. W. Bush in the early 1990s. “It just won’t work that way.”

Lighthizer is pushing to get a Nafta deal to meet deadlines for the U.S. House and Senate to debate and approve an agreement this year. Waiting until 2019, when a new Congress takes over, “changes the whole way you have to kind of construct the deal,” he said last week.

The U.S. official is fresh off a trip to Beijing, where two days of trade discussions ended with China agreeing to keep on talking, and little else. The U.S. asked China to reduce support for high-tech industries and help cut a trade deficit in goods that reached a record $375 billion last year, according to a document seen by Bloomberg.

Tariff Threats

As it parries with China, the U.S. is also threatening to impose tariffs on steel and aluminum imports from Canada and Mexico by June 1 if they can’t agree to a new Nafta deal by then. Washington is negotiating tariff exemptions with other allies as well, including the European Union, as part of its strategy to protect domestic metal producers from foreign competition.

The U.S. is pushing to reach a Nafta deal in principle to start advancing it through Congress, which is understood to mean 95 percent of the deal is agreed to, according to a summary of a Canadian government briefing published online last week by a rail industry group.

“We are really committed to doing whatever it takes to get a good win-win result,” Freeland told reporters during a Saturday conference call. “I am not going to prejudge the outcome of the talks.”

This week’s Nafta ministerial talks are scheduled to start Monday, Tuesday and probably Wednesday, said a Canadian official familiar with the plans, speaking on condition of anonymity. Freeland said Saturday she has no fixed departure date from talks.

The meetings are taking place in private, though Freeland and Guajardo often provide updates to waiting reporters outside the USTR building in Washington.

Auto Rules

The topic of automobiles is likely to loom large, with Freeland saying ministerial-level talks will focus on that subject. The U.S. has pushed for changes to the 24-year-old pact that would boost domestic auto manufacturing. Its proposals include tightening rules of origin, which govern how much regional content a car must have to qualify for Nafta’s duty-free benefits, and requiring certain portions of a car to be built by people earning higher wages.

At the last round of talks, Mexico was outnumbered by the U.S. and Canada on auto wages, a battlefront that could upend the nation’s industry. Talks grew contentious, according to two people familiar with discussions, although negotiators emerged striking a relatively upbeat public tone.

The head of the Mexican automotive association, which represents companies with factories in Mexico, last week said the latest U.S. proposal is unworkable. He highlighted as problematic the demand for 40 percent of the value of certain cars to be made by workers earning at least $16 an hour. Mexican auto assembly workers generally make far less than that.

Freeland said good progress has been made on the auto issues. Then again, Canada’s factory wages are closer to those of the U.S. than to Mexico.

Divides remain on several other issues, including seasonal barriers to agriculture trade, U.S. efforts to open Canada’s dairy industry to foreign competition, government procurement, dispute resolution, and a clause that would terminate Nafta after five years unless the nations agree to continue it.

Despite the challenges, officials from the three countries have expressed some public optimism. As recently as last week, Mexico’s Deputy Economy Minister Juan Carlos Baker said he saw an 80 percent chance for a deal this month, while cautioning that the ability to get there will depend on flexibility among the three nations.

Stephen Kho, who spent nine years in a senior role at the U.S. Trade Representative’s office, said the ability to reach a deal in that time is far from certain.

“While you hear generally good vibes, it still wouldn’t be surprising if things fall apart,” said Kho, who’s now a partner at the law firm Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP.

— With assistance by Andrew Mayeda, and Frederic Tomesco

PM. 2018-05-04. ​Canada’s investment in Toyota supports thousands of jobs in Ontario Cambridge, Ontario - May 4, 2018

With its talented workers, world-class companies, and innovative technologies, Canada’s auto sector is well positioned to design and build cars that meet the needs of people today and tomorrow.

The Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, today announced a $110 million investment to support Toyota Motor Manufacturing Canada’s $1.4 billion investment in its Cambridge and Woodstock plants. Prime Minister Trudeau was joined at the announcement by the Premier of Ontario, Kathleen Wynne.

The investment will support more than 8,000 jobs in Southwestern Ontario, and will create 450 new jobs as well as 1,000 new co-op placements. Toyota will also invest $200 million in Canadian research and development over ten years. Together, these actions will help maintain and create good, well-paying jobs for the middle class, and promote economic growth and long-term prosperity.

Toyota’s investment will bring a new advanced manufacturing platform to the company’s plants in Ontario. Once complete, Canada will be the North American hub for the RAV4 and home to Toyota’s largest hybrid vehicle production in North America.

Quotes

“Companies have confidence in Canada and Canadian workers, and know that we are ready to build the cars of the future. Today’s investment will support thousands of jobs for Canadians, and keep our auto sector globally competitive and at the centre of the growing demand for hybrid cars. We welcome Toyota’s decision to invest in our highly skilled workforce and expand its presence in Canada. This is a smart decision that further establishes our country as the place where cars of the future are built.”

—The Rt. Hon. Justin Trudeau, Prime Minister of Canada

“Ontario's $110 million investment in Toyota is about making sure our province stays competitive during a time of rapid economic change, and building the kind of global partnerships that support long-term prosperity. This partnership will establish Cambridge and Woodstock as the North American manufacturing hub for Toyota's RAV4, including hybrid versions. This is a vote of confidence in our highly-skilled, talented workforce, and our entire province.”

—Kathleen Wynne, Premier of Ontario

“Toyota Motor Manufacturing Canada has always had a strong partnership with the Canadian government. With 30 years of manufacturing experience, our success is a result of TMMC team members, who are known for their dedication, high levels of skill, and challenge mindset. We're aggressively adopting new technology and innovative processes to ensure our ongoing success.”

—Fred Volf, President of Toyota Motor Manufacturing Canada

Quick Facts

• The vehicles to be manufactured at Toyota’s plants will be significantly more fuel efficient, and select process improvements within the manufacturing process will reduce volatile organic compound emissions in select shops by 10 per cent.
• Toyota built 153 cars the first year it began manufacturing in Canada in 1988. Today, the plants in Cambridge and Woodstock can produce more than half a million vehicles every year – making Toyota Motor Manufacturing Canada the largest automotive manufacturer in Canada.
• This project is funded under the Strategic Innovation Fund, a $1.26 billion program to support research, development, and commercialization of new products that pave the way for Canada as a global innovation leader and attract investments that create jobs. The Government of Canada launched the Strategic Innovation Fund in Budget 2017 to ensure Canada remains a top destination for businesses to invest, grow, and create jobs.
• In addition to the Strategic Innovation Fund, we continue to invest in key programs and services to help businesses innovate, create jobs, and grow Canada’s economy.
• With a simple, story-based user interface, the new Innovation Canada platform can match businesses with the most fitting programs and services in about two minutes.
• The automotive sector is Canada’s largest export industry, supporting over 500,000 jobs and contributing $18 billion annually to our economy.
• On average, the Canadian auto sector manufactures one car every 13 seconds.
• This is the largest of several recent investments in the Canadian auto sector. Recent investments include:
• In March 2017, with support from the federal and provincial governments, Ford Motor Company of Canada announced more than $1 billion in investments, including the establishment of a new connected vehicle research centre, and the creation and maintenance of almost 800 jobs.
• In January 2017, also with support from the federal and provincial governments, Honda of Canada Manufacturing launched a project worth $492 million that will maintain Canadian jobs by supporting advanced and clean technologies.
• In June 2016, General Motors announced an increase in spending for research and development, which will increase its total number of software engineers in Canada to 1,000.

Strategic Innovation Fund: https://www.canada.ca/en/innovation-science-economic-development/programs/strategic-innovation-fund.html

BLOOMBERG. 4 May 2018. Business. Toyota Bets $1.1 Billion on SUVs in Canada With Trudeau’s Help
By Josh Wingrove  and John Lippert

• Automaker to hire 450 and boost RAV4 production in Ontario
• Federal, provincial governments chip in C$220 million combined

Toyota Motor Corp. is investing C$1.4 billion ($1.1 billion) in its Canadian operations to build traditional and hybrid RAV4 sport utility vehicles, banking on the nation’s manufacturing sector amid a cloud of uncertainty from Nafta talks.

The Japanese automaker’s Canadian unit made the announcement Friday afternoon at its plant in Cambridge, Ontario, alongside Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne. The expansion there and in nearby Woodstock will create 450 jobs, supported by C$110 million each from the federal and provincial governments. The two Toyota plants west of Toronto now employ about 8,000 people and made more than 600,000 vehicles last year.

The investment will allow Canada to built a “hybrid ecosystem,” becoming the largest producer of hybrid Toyotas in North America and supporting Canada’s supply chain of auto-part markets, Trudeau said. “This is a great day for the auto sector,” he said.

Toyota and other automakers are shifting focus to meet consumers’ growing preference for SUVs over cars. Toyota, the world’s second-biggest carmaker, has already announced it will move assembly of the Corolla compact to the U.S. to make room for RAV4 output. During 2017, Toyota sold 407,594 RAV4s in the U.S., topping Camry sedan sales for the first time.

“That type of investment is very good news for the province -- at the same time it’s long overdue,” Rob Wildeboer, executive chairman at auto-parts maker Martinrea International Inc., said in an interview on BNN Bloomberg television Friday. “We have not been punching above our weight in Ontario.” He called for lower corporate taxes to boost Canadian competitiveness.

The auto industry is at the heart of ongoing North American Free Trade Agreement talks, with ministers due to meet Monday in Washington. The U.S. wants more cars and auto parts made in North America and is proposing to raise the share of content sourced from the region to 75 percent from the current 62.5 percent. The countries are pushing for a deal in principle this month in hopes of passing it in the current U.S. congress, and before Mexico’s July 1 elections.

Toyota will also invest in Canadian research and development over 10 years, and create 1,000 new co-op placements with the announcement. New RAV4s, including hybrids, will be built at the two Ontario plants, Toyota Motor Manufacturing Canada President Fred Volf said at the news conference. “We’re aggressively adopting new technology and innovative processes to ensure our ongoing success,” Volf said in a statement.

Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada. May 4, 2018. Federal government supports creation of advanced manufacturing centre in Burlington. Investment will help create 295 jobs by 2026 and promote innovation in Canada’s manufacturing industry

Burlington, Ontario - The Government of Canada is committed to creating good middle-class jobs, growth and long-term prosperity by investing in Canada's advanced manufacturing sector to promote innovation and global competitiveness.

Today the Honourable Karina Gould, Minister of Democratic Institutions, on behalf of the Honourable Navdeep Bains, Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development, announced a repayable federal investment of $14 million to advanced manufacturing company Burloak Technologies. Minister Gould was joined by Eleanor McMahon, Ontario’s President of the Treasury Board who announced a $7 million provincial grant. The total value of the project is $104.7 million.

This investment will help create 295 new Canadian jobs by 2026 and will enable Burloak to open a new, world-class Additive Manufacturing Technology Centre in Burlington, Ontario, that will help make Canada a world leader in additive manufacturing.

Additive manufacturing, also known as 3D printing, is a cheaper, faster, and more environmentally friendly method of manufacturing. 3D printed parts are lighter and often more durable than traditionally manufactured parts.

Burloak’s investment in Ontario will also generate more R&D, more collaboration with post-secondary institutions and help strengthen the region’s advanced manufacturing cluster and supply chain.

This investment is made possible through the Strategic Innovation Fund, a program designed to attract and support high-quality business investments across all sectors of the economy, by encouraging R&D that will accelerate technology transfer and commercialization of innovative products, processes and services and facilitate the growth of innovative firms.


Quotes

“This is great news for Burlington and for Canada’s advanced manufacturing industry. Advanced manufacturing is an important and growing sector that is contributing to our economy and creating well-paying middle class jobs. Our government’s investment in Burloak’s project will help ensure Canada remains at the forefront of advanced manufacturing technology and a globally competitive centre for innovation. ”

– The Honorable Karina Gould, Minister of Democratic Institutions

Quick facts

• Burloak Technologies is a division of Samuel, Son & Co. based in Mississauga, Ontario. Samuel employs 4800 people at more than 100 facilities (622 of whom are in in Ontario).
• Canada’s manufacturing industry is an important part of the country’s economy, contributing $174 billion or 10 percent to Canada’s GDP in 2016.
• The Strategic Innovation Fund is a flexible program that reflects the diversity of innovation in all sectors of the economy.

SOFTWOOD LUMBER

The Globe and Mail. 7 May 2018. Forestry firms reap share gains as investors hope for lumber ‘supercycle’. Forestry: U.S. lumber duties not as damaging as first feared
BRENT JANG, VANCOUVER

Canada’s major forestry companies are riding an industry upswing as their share prices soar despite trade disputes with the United States and delays in shipments.

For investors big and small, the stock rally since early 2017 has been a welcome sight in a sector that has gone through a series of economic downturns.

“It’s a cyclical industry, and cycles come and go,” business magnate Jim Pattison, who has invested heavily in B.C. forestry companies, said in an interview. “The key is to take advantage of the cycles when the time comes.”

Analysts say forestry firms have invested heavily in new technology to become more efficient at sawmills, including the use of sensors and lasers to make the most of each log.

Mr. Pattison points to the evidence on the shop floor. “You go through a mill, and it’s a lot different [than] when you used to go through. New technology has moved in,” said the 89-year-old billionaire.

The difference this time in the commodity cycle is that lumber in particular might be in the early stages of an extended rally. Raymond James Ltd. analyst Daryl Swetlishoff said lumber producers are poised to enjoy what he calls a “supercycle” − a multiyear boom in which producers enjoy both high softwood prices and strong output at their mills.

Mr. Pattison, who owns nearly half of Canfor Corp. and more than 10 per cent of West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd., said he’s pleased to see the forestry sector find its footing. Since the beginning of 2017, the share prices of both companies have nearly doubled.

Canfor closed at $29.96 on Friday on the Toronto Stock Exchange while West Fraser finished at $89.75 – both near their record highs. Mr. Pattison’s Canfor stake is now valued at $1.9-billion and his interest in West Fraser is worth more than $700-million.

Mr. Swetlishoff originally floated the notion of “peak lumber” back in 2010, and while it has taken longer than envisaged for a sustained upswing to emerge, he sees signs of a combination of robust demand, tight supply and strong prices. “More recently, lumber prices have hit all-time highs as elements of the supercycle thesis have come to pass,” he said in a research note.

On the demand side, fears of reduced lumber orders from the United States due to the crossborder softwood dispute have proven to be overblown. In 2017, the U.S. Department of Commerce imposed final countervailing and anti-dumping tariffs averaging 20.23 per cent against most Canadian lumber producers.

While mill operators in Canada remain worried that their communities will face tough times if the softwood fight lingers through 2018 and 2019, most Canadian lumber producers are weathering the softwood duties by passing on most of the extra costs to U.S. home builders.

RBC Dominion Securities Inc. analyst Paul Quinn said transportation problems have hindered deliveries of wood products this year. “Railcar availability continued to be an issue for some mills but improvements in trucking availability were noted,” he said.

Don Kayne, Canfor’s chief executive, acknowledges the challenges with logistics bottlenecks. In the long term, he sees supply and demand being favourable for the lumber business, especially for B.C.-based producers such as Canfor that are able to export to Asia.

“Without question, there is increasing demand for our products around the world, especially since 2016,” Mr. Kayne said in an interview, noting brisk orders from Japan, China and South Korea. “In North America, it has been slow growth but steady growth.”

He said institutional investors have sensed the optimism in the forestry sector. “There’s an increasing positive sentiment for our industry. Over the last 10 years, most Canadian companies have invested significantly in their operations to improve their competitiveness on a global scale. That’s helped a lot,” Mr. Kayne said.

Resolute Forest Products Ltd. CEO Yves Laflamme, who replaced the retired Richard Garneau in February, said it boils down to operating more efficiently than a decade ago. “We’re pretty optimistic about wood. We have invested to do better with the same log, the same wood,” he said.

Canfor, West Fraser and Interfor Corp. have benefited from their U.S. lumber operations, while Resolute has pulp and paper mills south of the border. Interfor’s stock price has surged almost 80 per cent since the start of 2017, closing at $24.78 on Friday.

But it hasn’t been a steady climb up for all Canadian forestry firms. Resolute has been on a roller coaster, including a ride down in February, when the Montrealbased company missed fourthquarter profit expectations and also got hurt by lingering investor concerns about a shortage of truck drivers. Nevertheless, Resolute shares have risen 78 per cent since the start of 2017, closing at $12.73 on Friday.

Resolute produces newsprint, but Canfor, West Fraser and Interfor do not. The U.S. Commerce Department hit Resolute with countervailing duties of 4.42 per cent against the company’s Canadian newsprint in January, but did not impose an anti-dumping tariff.

Resolute, Canfor Pulp Products Inc. and Domtar Corp. have announced price increases for pulp in North America, affecting northern bleached softwood kraft markets. “The strength of pulp markets in 2017 has continued in 2018 as producers continue to push prices higher,” Mr. Quinn said.

TOURISM

Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada. May 4, 2018. Government of Canada highlights cross-border tourism and trade at Great Lakes Economic Forum. Minister Chagger meets with officials from Great Lakes–St. Lawrence Region in Montréal

Montréal, Quebec - Canada trades with many nations around the world, but the United States of America is by far our most important trading partner. The links between Canada and the United States in the Great Lakes–St. Lawrence Region are particularly important.

To promote this special relationship, the Honourable Bardish Chagger, Leader of the Government in the House of Commons and Minister of Small Business and Tourism, participated in this year’s Great Lakes Economic Forum in Montréal, Quebec, an event that aims to improve the competitiveness of Canada and U.S. states in this region.

In her remarks, Minister Chagger emphasized the importance of NAFTA and highlighted its benefits for small businesses on both sides of the border. She stressed that the integrated economies and supply chains supported by NAFTA are critical for both our countries and that many smaller companies on both sides of the border rely on these supply chains for their success. She also addressed the need to grow cross-border tourism and highlighted the tourism sector’s contributions to success and economic growth in the region.

The tourism industry in both Canada and the United States benefits from our common border—and the people-to-people ties that transcend it. Tourism is Canada’s number one service export. In 2015 alone, more than 12.7 million U.S. citizens visited Canada as tourists and spent $7.8 billion.

While in Montréal, Minister Chagger met with business leaders, state officials and trade association representatives. She also participated in a Q&A discussion with Bloomberg News journalist Sandrine Rastello, where she reaffirmed the Government of Canada’s support for free trade and its commitment to developing a progressive trade agenda that will ensure the benefits of free trade are widely and fairly shared.

Quotes

“Trade between our two countries is rapidly changing the way Canadians live and work and is bringing greater economic opportunities for the middle class. Our government strongly believes that cross-border trade and investments will mean economic growth and prosperity for both Canada and the United States. That’s why we are committed to working closely with our American partners to ensure that the Great Lakes–St. Lawrence region is competitive and prosperous for generations to come.”

– The Honourable Bardish Chagger, Leader of the Government in the House of Commons and Minister of Small Business and Tourism

Quick facts

• The Great Lakes–St. Lawrence Region is a binational region that includes the states of New York, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Minnesota and Wisconsin as well as the provinces of Ontario and Quebec.
• In 2017, 75 percent of Canada’s trade was with the United States, according to Statistics Canada.
• Canada is the number one customer for all eight Great Lakes states and the top trading partner for most U.S. states in general.
• In 2017, bilateral trade between Canada and the Great Lakes states totalled more than $250 billion.
• More than 735,000 Canadian jobs were directly supported by tourism in 2017.
• More than 12.7 million U.S. citizens visited Canada as tourists in 2015, spending a total of $7.8 billion in Canada.

Canada’s New Tourism Vision: https://www.ic.gc.ca/eic/site/095.nsf/eng/00002.html

INFRASTRUCTURE

Western Economic Diversification Canada. 2018-05-07. Canada 150 Community Infrastructure Program in Western Canada

Backgrounder

The year 2017 marked the 150th anniversary of Confederation, an occasion for all Canadians to connect with the past, celebrate the country's achievements and look toward the future. It was an opportunity to reflect on and deepen our sense of what it means to be Canadian, as well as to begin a new era of optimism and hope across the country.

The Canada 150 Community Infrastructure Program (CIP150), a $300-million fund established to celebrate Canada's 150th birthday, marked the occasion through investments in projects to rehabilitate, renovate or enhance cultural and community facilities. These spaces help define a community's sense of place, pride and purpose, and ensure that Canada 150 has a lasting legacy.

In Western Canada, the Government of Canada invested over $91.3 million to rehabilitate or improve more than 770 community infrastructure assets and facilities that create community and cultural benefits for the public.

Western Economic Diversification Canada was responsible for administering the program across the four western provinces. The program officially closed on March 31, 2018.

British Columbia

In British Columbia, CIP 150 supported 222 projects with approved investments totalling $35,030,507.

In British Columbia, one community that benefited from a project supported with the CIP 150 is Gibsons. The Gibsons Building Society received funding for the Nicholas Sonntag Marine Education Centre. Since launching the opening phase of the new Marine Education Centre and multi-purpose space in the fall 2017, the Gibsons Building Society has developed 30 exciting live exhibits showcasing 70 different local species from the rich underwater world of Howe Sound. More than 1,500 guests of all ages have visited (and revisited) the aquarium to see the stunning habitats, developing a deeper appreciation for marine environments.

Alberta

In Alberta, CIP 150 supported 224 projects with approved investments totalling $30,113,848.

One of the Alberta communities that benefited from a CIP 150 project is Grande Prairie. Clarkson Community Hall, one of the original buildings in Evergreen Park, received funding to do renovations that have helped to extend the lifespan of the facility. Its transformation has reinvigorated the building as an attractive space for community events. The building has significant historical meaning to the community. It is named after pioneer Douglas Clarkson, who helped establish the distribution system that brought electric light and power to farms in Alberta.

Saskatchewan

In Saskatchewan, CIP 150 supported 175 projects with approved investments totalling $12,406,540.

One example of a project in Saskatchewan that benefited from CIP 150 support is the Young Men's Christian Association (YMCA) of Regina. The YMCA partnered with Executive Mat Service Ltd. under their Green Thumb program, an initiative designed to reduce waste that typically ends up in the landfill. Using CIP 150 funding, the YMCA invested in an energy capture boiler system to heat the pool at their facility. The new system uses biofuel pellets made from recycled paper and food wastes gathered throughout the city. The upgrade will demonstrate that an energy capture system works in a commercial setting. It will also significantly reduce the YMCA's reliance on natural gas by using waste as an alternate heating source. The YMCA sees its new boiler system as a means of controlling their costs to help better serve their clients, while also demonstrating excellent environmental stewardship.

Manitoba

In Manitoba, CIP 150 supported 150 projects with approved investments totalling $13,785,435.

One Manitoba project that benefited from CIP 150 funding is the Winkler Recreation Complex in Winkler. The community used the investment to make several upgrades to the arena, including installing an exterior ramp, automated doors, rubber flooring and benches in the dressing rooms. Prior to the renovations, the arena had limited accessibility for users with mobility impairments. The improvements to the facility have enabled people of all ages and abilities access to the arena.

Western Canadians Benefit from Improved Community Spaces. More than 770 Western Canadian community infrastructure projects were supported as part of the Canada 150 celebrations

Investing in community and cultural infrastructure is essential to maintaining dynamic and inclusive communities. Community and cultural facilities are places where families can play, neighbours can meet and Canadians can celebrate the many cultures that make up our country. They are at the heart of towns and neighbourhoods across Canada.

The Government of Canada is proud of the results of its $91.3 million investment in Western Canada’s community infrastructure. The projects that the Government supported during the Canada 150 anniversary year have enhanced community and cultural infrastructure, created a better future for Indigenous Peoples and promoted a clean growth economy across the West.

Federal funding supported improvements to parks, playgrounds, fitness trails, community centres and cultural facilities. The upgrades made to these community spaces also boosted local economic activity and improved access to public spaces, making communities stronger and more inclusive.

The projects received funding through the Canada 150 Community Infrastructure Program (CIP 150), a Government of Canada program that invested in community infrastructure projects across the country. In Western Canada, CIP 150 was delivered by Western Economic Diversification Canada. The program concluded on March 31, 2018.

Quotes

“Our investments in community-building projects achieved tremendous results. We marked Canada’s 150th anniversary by improving the places that bring us together—the places that allow us to stay fit, unwind and connect with our friends and neighbours. In a country where people come from every corner of the world, these communal spaces allow us to establish the bonds of common understanding and friendship. As such, they truly embody the values of openness, diversity and inclusion that define all Canadians.”

The Honourable Navdeep Bains, Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development and Minister responsible for Western Economic Diversification Canada

Quick facts

• Canada 150 Community Infrastructure Program was a $300-million national program established to celebrate Canada’s 150th anniversary through investments in the community spaces that bring Canadians together, with a portion of the funding delivered by a regional development agency in each region of the country.
• The program was designed to leave a lasting legacy by supporting the rehabilitation or improvement of existing community infrastructure assets and facilities across the country that promote community and cultural benefits for the public.

The project and approved investment breakdown per province is as follows:

• British Columbia – 222 projects totalling $35,030,507;
• Alberta – 224 projects totalling $30,113,848;
• Saskatchewan – 175 projects totalling $12,406,540; and
• Manitoba – 150 projects totalling $13,785,435.

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LGCJ.: