Carney looks to solve trade impasse as meeting with Xi takes place in Beijing
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney meets with President of China Xi Jinping at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, on Friday.Sean Kilpatrick/Reuters
Mark Carney is meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping, as the Prime Minister seeks new markets and foreign investment to offset the damage done by U.S. protectionist tariffs.
Mr. Carney and Mr. Xi held a bilateral meeting at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing Friday, which was followed by a working lunch.
Mr. Xi welcomed Mr. Carney, saying that in recent months Canada has resumed co-operation in various fields with China and this has achieved positive results.
“I am delighted about this,” Mr. Xi said.
Mr. Carney’s first meeting with Mr. Xi since taking office was last October during the APEC summit.
“I am ready to continue working with you, in a spirit of responsibility toward history, toward our people, and toward the world, to further improve bilateral relations,” Mr. Xi told Mr. Carney.
Earlier: Canada says it’s open to Chinese investment in energy sector
The two leaders met for almost an hour before heading into a working lunch.
Canada and China are forging ahead with a new strategic partnership and both sides stand to make “historic” gains as they leverage each other’s strengths, Mr. Carney told the Chinese leader ahead of the meeting.
“Particularly in agriculture and agri-food, energy, and finance,” Mr. Carney said. “That is where I believe we can make immediate and sustained progress.”
Mr. Carney, asked before he left for the meeting if Canada has a deal with China, said: “You’ll find out.”
Asked if he was feeling positive, he replied: “Always positive.”
An imperative for him is to make progress on solving a punishing trade war that began after Canada imposed tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles in 2024. Beijing later retaliated with levies on Canadian agricultural products, including canola, pork, peas and seafood. China has said it would remove the levies if Canada scraps the EV tariff.
Mr. Carney’s four-day official visit to China, which began on Wednesday, is the first by a Canadian prime minister since 2017.
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On Thursday, the Prime Minister met with Premier Li Qiang and Zhao Leji, China’s top legislator. The two sides signed five non-binding memorandums of understanding, including one on strengthening energy co-operation, at a time of rising petroleum exports to China from Canada. The energy MOU also promotes Canadian uranium sales to China, saying the two countries aim to “strengthen co-operation in natural uranium trade.”
Energy and Natural Resources Minister Tim Hodgson – one of four cabinet ministers accompanying Mr. Carney – said Canada welcomes Chinese investment in energy, including conventional energy such as the oil sands.
“What we heard loud and clear is China is looking for reliable trading partners, trading partners that don’t use energy for coercion,” he told reporters in Beijing, without elaborating on the statement.
The two countries also issued a joint economic and trade co-operation “road map” that said Canada would welcome Chinese investments in areas including energy, agriculture and consumer products as part of a growing relationship.
On Wednesday, Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand, who is also a member of Mr. Carney’s delegation, said talks on reducing Chinese tariffs on Canadian canola were productive.
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As The Globe and Mail has previously reported, government officials have told the beleaguered canola industry that it should not expect the Prime Minister’s trip to China to result in the elimination of tariffs, and to prepare for reduced rates at best. Over the past few weeks, federal officials have asked grain traders to identify acceptable tariff rates for canola products facing restrictions from Beijing.
The Carney government has stressed the need to shift trade away from the United States, which has grown more protectionist under President Donald Trump. Mr. Carney has set a 10-year goal for Canada to double non-U.S. trade, which would generate $300-billion more in annual exports.
Chinese state media, for its part, has warned Canada that a closer relationship means Ottawa should no longer take direction from the United States.
“The Carney government needs to demonstrate that its willingness to strengthen cooperation with China is not just a makeshift move to reduce the bill being charged by the U.S.,” a China Daily editorial said earlier this week.
“If Ottawa still chooses to subject its China policy to the will of Washington again in the future, it will only render its previous efforts to mend ties with Beijing in vain.”
With files from Alexandra Li in Beijing and reports from Reuters and The Canadian Press