Canada reinforcing trade ties with US in advance of presidential election

Canada’s trade minister, Mary Ng, went to Washington, DC, last week to reinforce the importance of the Canada-US trade relationship.

Ng, whose full title is minister of export promotion, international trade and economic development, met with industry and business leaders in the US capital to discuss ongoing Canada-U.S. collaboration. The talks covered areas of mutual interest, including cross-border supply chains, manufacturing, research and labour.

The visit was part of the Team Canada strategy on engagement with the United States, which is co-led by Minister Ng and François-Philippe Champagne, minister of innovation, science and industry, with the collaboration of Kirsten Hillman, Canada’s ambassador to the United States.

Ng participated in a roundtable discussion with members of the Canadian American Business Council to hear their views on the strengths and challenges of the Canada-U.S. partnership and highlight how Team Canada’s engagement will deepen this relationship.

During a meeting with Neil Herrington, senior vice-president of the Americas Program at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the minister discussed how Canadian and U.S. businesses are stronger together and how closer collaboration between our countries will benefit communities and workers on both sides of the border.

Ng’s visit included discussions with Ambassador Hillman about the Team Canada engagement strategy and progress made in the implementation of the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement.

“We’re kicking off our renewed Team Canada engagement strategy in D.C. As we build on these important conversations with industry experts and business leaders, we are showcasing how interconnected our countries are,” Ng said.

“From a record $1.3 trillion in trade to creating millions of jobs together, the relationship between Canada and the United States is stronger than ever.”

In 2022, bilateral trade in goods and services amounted to $1.3 trillion, which represents nearly $3.5 billion daily and $145.3 million every hour.

More than 2.2 million jobs in Canada depend on exports to the United States and more than 7.8 million jobs in the United States are related to trade with Canada.

Majority-owned Canadian companies operating in the United Sates employ 866,300 U.S. workers.

In 2022, total trilateral merchandise trade between Canada, the United States and Mexico amounted to $1,857.8 billion – a five-fold increase since 1993.