Reigniting the Canada–China Economic Conversation

Yesterday in Beijing I participated in a roundtable on promoting Canada-China trade, organized by the Canada China Business Council and the Center for China and Globalization.

It was a valuable discussion that brought together Canadian and Chinese officials, as well as members of the Canadian business community in China.

We had frank a discussion on issues including visas, market access for various industries, tariffs, promoting investment, boosting two-way student exchanges, and more—as well as actions that both governments can take to boost this trading relationship.

As someone who’s spent the past two decades helping brands enter the Chinese market, I firmly believe that deepening ties between Canada and China is not just possible—but mutually beneficial.

Trade and investment between our two countries is already strong, but there’s so much more room to grow—particularly in consumer goods, green tech, and digital commerce. Canadian companies are world-class in many of these areas, and China remains the world’s most dynamic and fast-evolving consumer market.

With the event happening against the backdrop of Australian PM Albanese’s visit to China, it was a reminder that the Canada-China relationship has a lot of untapped potential. We swapped stories of the old Team Canada trade missions when state visits were the norm and the bilateral relationship had so much promise.

Continued dialogue like we saw yesterday can help get us back there. Thanks to CCG and CCBC for bringing us together.