Diplomats in Beijing are predicting an announcement this month to mark the commencement of free trade talks between Canada and China. This would be a game changer for exports of Canadian seafood exports to China, which have been growing at an annual rate of 15 to 20 percent over the past five years.
The Canada China Business Council has estimated a free-trade agreement (FTA) could double Canadian exports to China by 2030 and create an additional 25,000 Canadian jobs. For China, the proposed FTA has echoes of a similar deal with Australia in 2015, which has given China access to assets in Australia as well as vast amounts of natural resources.
But the agreement is not a done deal. China wants Canada to build an energy pipeline to the Pacific coast as part of any FTA, while Canadian officials want China to buy more Canadian products to address a large trade deficit which the Asian giant runs with Canada.
