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<html> <head> <meta name="generator" content="Corel WordPerfect 12"> <meta http-equiv="content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"> <style> p { margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 1px } body { font-family: "Arial", sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal } </style> </head> <body> January 16, 2007 BEIJING, China 2007/1 CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY NOTES FOR AN ADDRESS BY THE HONOURABLE DAVID EMERSON, MINISTER OF INTERNATIONAL TRADE AND MINISTER FOR THE PACIFIC GATEWAY AND THE VANCOUVER-WHISTLER OLYMPICS OFFICIAL DINNER WITH THE CHINESE AND CANADIAN BUSINESS COMMUNITIES Let me thank you in the Canadian and Chinese business communities for the pioneering work you are doing for Canada here in China. The economic frontiers you are exploring, the business you are building and the friendships you are making form an important foundation for our future relationship with China. Today, Canada’s relationship with China is rich and runs deep. I want to say it has a long history, but we should keep it in perspective. Over the great span of history, China has been a global leader much of the past 3,000 or more years. Canada is a young nation. Our history with China goes back less than 200 years. But in that time, our two countries have developed close ties. Strategically positioned around the Pacific Rim, our people, our economies and our histories have intermingled. Some one million Chinese immigrants to Canada have made a profound contribution to the Canada we know today. Cities like Vancouver and Toronto are now home to North America’s most vibrant Chinese communities. And Chinese is our most widely spoken language, after English and French (our official languages). If you connect the dots you will also find the “China factor” driving other big shifts and changes in Canada. With China and other Asian dynamos pulling the world’s economic centre of gravity toward the Orient, Canada’s own economic centre of gravity is being pulled westward, toward the Pacific. What you would have trouble finding is a Canadian sector or region that is not facing adjustments to the China factor… adjustments to Chinese demand for goods and services; adjustments to Chinese cost structures and increasingly sophisticated supply chains. But influence and change run in both directions ways. Canadian missionaries built hospitals and schools here in China. Dr. Norman Bethune left a mark that evokes positive feelings among the Chinese people to this day. Our humanitarian presence, plus the historic commercial networks of companies like Manulife, opened Canadian eyes to China’s potential, and we responded. Thirty-six years ago, we became one of the first Western countries to establish diplomatic relations with the PRC. More recently, we have been a strong and active supporter of China’s accession to the WTO, and we are good partners in APEC. Canadian companies—companies like Bombardier, SNC-Lavalin, SunLife, and the Bank of Montreal—are now well established here. Canadians have clearly been a part of China’s ascent from “dormant colossus” to “global dynamo.” Reflecting this history, the Canada-China relationship has emerged strong and secure. But are we realizing the true potential benefits for both countries? My answer, Canada’s answer, is that we are not. And we have not been realizing the potential for a number of years. In the area of trade, China is Canada’s fourth largest export market and our second largest trading partner, behind only the United States. But it’s not a very balanced trade picture. Merchandise imports to Canada are more than four times our exports to China. While Chinese imports from Canada grew 2.3 percent in 2005, the United States saw 9.14 percent growth, while Australia reached 40 percent. For Canada, I suspect 2006 was even worse than 2005. Foreign direct investment is also weak, with China receiving only 0.2 percent of Canada’s outward investment in 2005, while China’s share of FDI in Canada was 0.3 percent. Meanwhile, the Asia-Pacific Foundation of Canada recently found that very few major Canadian companies have a “China Strategy” at all. Bottom line: we have work to do. Our government is responding. The Minister of Finance’s fall economic statement presented a roadmap of policy directions called “Advantage Canada.” Tax policies, fiscal priorities and regulations will all be aligned to form a strategy for securing Canada’s competitiveness and prosperity. A key component of Advantage Canada is a Global Commerce Strategy focused directly on international trade and investment. First, we will reinvigorate our trade policy, Canada has long been an active proponent of rules-based, multilateral trade agreements. That priority is now more important than ever. And our immediate focus will be on a final push to achieve an ambitious result in the Doha Round. Today, however, we are seeing a proliferation of bilateral and regional trade agreements, many involving Canada’s closest trading partners. While working successfully through WTO negotiations is our first priority, Canada cannot stand by and be disadvantaged in this race for bilateral trade deals. We will therefore step up negotiations of bilateral trade agreements. This will include not just “big ticket” free trade agreements, but more focused agreements covering such areas as air services and investment. Canada has recently concluded a number of air services agreements, including one with China that will substantially increase air frequencies and stimulate trade, investment and tourism. We are also giving priority to concluding a Foreign Investment Promotion and Protection Agreement (FIPA) with China. In today’s global marketplace, investment drives trade, and investment is the essential catalyst for technology transfer and the development of supply chain links. A Canada-China FIPA will encourage Canadian businesses to invest and establish roots in China. And it will encourage Chinese businesses to do the same in Canada. Negotiations are underway and we are hopeful that we will conclude an agreement in the months ahead. In the area of tourism, Canada has for some time been seeking an Approved Destination Status Agreement. With about 115,000 visitors in 2005, China has become Canada’s 10th largest source of tourists. And it is one of the fastest growing tourism markets in the world. Today we have a “once in a generation” opportunity to take two-way tourism to new and sustained levels. In 2008, China is hosting the Summer Olympic Games. Two years later, Vancouver-Whistler will host the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games. And later that same year, China is hosting the World Expo 2010. With the eyes of the world on our two nations, we should work together for mutual benefit. There are clear opportunities for sharing best practices as host countries. But the greatest opportunity lies in using the Games to promote Canada-China trade, investment and tourism, as well as cultural and educational exchanges. Canada will, for example, use the 2010 Olympics to project Canada as a centre of excellence and innovation in the world. This includes a big presence at the BC-Canada Pavilion in Beijing in 2008. This brings me to the second element of our Global Commerce Strategy. We’re going to be telling the world a new story about Canada. We will continue to build on natural resources successes—in energy, in mining, in forestry and in agriculture. But we will show China and the world that Canada is moving up the value chain. We’re becoming a leader in science and technology. We are among world leaders in aerospace, information and communications technologies (ICT), wireless technology, and health sciences—areas like biotech, e-medicine and biomedical equipment. Innovative firms like RIM and Ballard are establishing themselves in China, and more will follow. In fact, I’m joined on this trip by a number of leading “green technology” firms, including suppliers of biofuels, hydrogen fuel cells and other energy efficient technologies. We will also remind the world that Canada is a great place to anchor North American commercial platforms, particularly where science, technology and innovation links are critical. We will also encourage science and technology partnerships around the world. Partners like China. This morning I joined the Chinese Minister of Science and Technology, Mr. Xu Guanhua, to sign a Canada-China Science and Technology Cooperation Agreement. It’s a clear commitment by both countries to work together—to bring our S&T; sectors closer together, to encourage high-tech partnerships, and to combine Canadian and Chinese technology and drive it into the marketplace. Importantly, this agreement will respect the value of human creativity and innovation. It will include strong intellectual property provisions. Beyond telling a new story about Canada, we have to step up our game on the ground in markets like China. Today our Trade Commissioners in China are actively supporting more than 3,000 companies across a range of sectors. But they are stretched very thin. The Global Commerce Strategy will boost our capacity to serve this market. Our approach will recognize that the Chinese market is not uniform or monolithic. It’s a network of 28 regions, with numerous subsectors and niche opportunities. Canadian companies, large and small, can succeed in China, and we will be there in focused, practical ways to ensure that they do. Transportation and Logistics... Advantage Canada recognizes that successful global engagement requires highly developed transportation connections, and it commits Canada to ambitious improvements. We’re committed to globally competitive gateways and corridors connecting Asia with North America with a comprehensive strategy called the Asia-Pacific Gateway and Corridor Initiative. The Prime Minister is committed and the Government of Canada is committed. Canada’s West Coast ports—Vancouver and Prince Rupert—are two to three days closer to key Asian ports than those of our American competitors. Our ports and airports are tightly integrated with road and rail connections reaching deep into the North American heartland. It’s a total transportation and logistical system that we are improving and expanding on. The private sector, together with the federal and provincial governments, is investing billions to upgrade transportation infrastructure. Beyond infrastructure, we’re smoothing our borders. We’re investing in technology to improve security and border facilitation. And we’re creating a regulatory framework that will continually and substantially improve the “origin-to-destination” economics of the Gateway. We want Chinese partners. We want Chinese investors. We want Chinese customers. We want strategic partnerships to help us build even more powerful links between Asia and North America. As a government, we are committed to strengthening our trade and competitive position. • We’re committed to trade policy improvements, both multilateral and bilateral; • We’re committed to communicating a new story about Canada's capabilities high up the value chain; and • We’re committed to building globally competitive connections between Asia and North America. Our relationship with China is a strategic priority, and these initiatives will take us a long way toward realizing our true potential. But commerce doesn’t grow in isolation. As Canadians we do carry our values and perspectives beyond Canada, to the rest of the world. We talk candidly about democratic governance, about the importance of the rule of law, and about corporate social responsibility. Like China, we promote international norms and standards that support peace, harmony and cooperation in the world. As Canadians, we generally believe in market-based economic development, rules-based trade and the rights of individuals. We see these things as fundamental to eliminating poverty and improving living standards. Open discussion and engagement in these broader issues should not conflict with commercial interests. China’s breathtaking economic success has come hand-in-hand with economic reforms and freedoms. And it has brought unprecedented opportunities for the Chinese people. As I said earlier, China has been one of the world’s great societies throughout recorded history. It’s been the birthplace of some of the greatest ideas: ideas in philosophy, in printing, in public service, and in sciences and technology. We recognize the important and defining role that China is again playing in the world today. As two great countries, let’s continue to build on our traditional ties of history, geography and commerce. Let’s work together to improve the lives of our people. Let’s take the Canada-China relationship to a whole new level. Let’s do it together. Thank you. </body> </html>

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Last Updated: 2006-10-30	Top of Page	Important Notices