Open For Business

Prime Minister Stephen Harper is intent on forging as many free trade deals with Canada and other potential partners as he possibly can.  

Perhaps to prove to Canadians that the opportunities exist and his government will take advantage of them.  Perhaps, as an aside, to demonstrate to our largest trading partner that Canada will not be trifled with, and that our trading relationship should be taken seriously as befits the billions in goods and materials that cross the border both ways.  Cavalier treatment results in defiance and a determined search elsewhere.

Announcing Canada open for business, for increased trade and investment in China is debatably wise.  Investment in natural resources is primarily what that giant nation is interested in.  Expecting the courtesy of investment resulting in increased employment for Canadians can take a blow from the reality of Chinese investors doing a dance around the expectations of the Government of Canada that employment opportunities be offered first to Canadians.

China has accustomed itself to taking over vast tracts of arable land in parts of Africa for agriculture that will benefit China's growing needs to feed its huge population.  Africans are rarely given the opportunity to work on those farming conglomerates.  Arrangements are made to import Chinese workers to do the work, thus solving two of China's problems; providing work for its citizens and food as well.

In Canada that is not a dreadfully popular move.  The Government of Canada has been inordinately busy signing trade deals with countries around the world, from the Middle East to Latin America, awaiting the opportunity to sign deals with the Trans-Pacific Partnership free trade agreement, and with the European Union.  In both these instances, Canada's opposites point to government subsidies with disfavour.

Not that government subsidies to key industries and agricultural products are not common enough elsewhere in the world.  But when one country represents the applicant, the others tend to pull rank and demand concessions.  With the European Union, negotiations that have been years in the making will not result in anything concrete for yet another several years, if they do come to fruition.

The Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) promises benefits to Canada in trade in tariff reductions, rules of origin, technical barriers, government procurement and services, along with trade facilitation, regulatory co-operation, intellectual property rights, labour mobility, sustainable development and investment.

The 27 member-states that make up the European Union represent a population of over a half-billion people; roughly one-third of China's population.  The expectation is that a CETA agreement would result in a $12-billion (.77%) annual increase in Canada's GDP.  Canadians will be able to enter the labour market in the EU, purported to be the largest in the world.

Canada represents the EU's 12th-largest export market.  CETA would increase the EU's GDP by an estimated $17-billion (0.08%).  There will be one signatory on the Canadian side; the Government of Canada, along with input from the provinces and territories.  On the EU side the agreement must be ratified by each member state of the European Union.