Goldy Hyder is the president and chief executive officer of the Business Council of Canada.
Farmers prepare to seed sunflowers in a field in Cherkaska Lozova, outskirts of Kharkiv, eastern Ukraine, on May 28.Bernat Armangue/The Associated Press
Ukraine’s new ambassador-designate in Ottawa, Yulia Kovaliv, describes her country’s economy as the “third front” in the war caused by Russia’s unprovoked invasion. This is a decisive front on which Canada can engage. Just as we are already supplying humanitarian aid and military equipment, we must also help support Ukraine’s economy.
Ukrainians have committed countless heroic acts of resistance since Russian troops poured over the border in February. Any such list must include those who risk their lives daily to protect Ukraine’s economy. Every morning, millions of Ukrainians go to work even though their places of business could be targeted by missile strikes.
Remarkably, despite the devastation in those areas subjected to the most horrific fighting and bombing, as of last month less than half of all Ukrainian-based businesses had been forced to scale back operations because of Russia’s invasion, and fewer than 5 per cent of Ukrainian companies had been forced out of business entirely.
Still, no modern, advanced economy can sustain itself without trade and investment. Ukraine wants to do business with Canada and, to that end, here are three ways Canada’s public and private sectors can answer the call.
First, we must update our 2017 free-trade agreement. Our two countries had committed to doing so prior to the invasion and those efforts must now be given greater priority. We should focus, in particular, on expanding the agreement to cover investment and trade in services as Ukraine’s services sector has proven especially resilient.
In recommending this, we know Ukrainian officials are seized with the tragically urgent situation at home. Canada should therefore look to areas where it can act unilaterally. That is why the Business Council of Canada supports the removal of tariffs on goods from Ukraine and urges the removal of other unnecessary barriers to trade.
The reopening of our embassy in Kyiv is an important development given that negotiating in person is always more efficient, effective and conducive to reaching an agreement. The gradual restoring of greater access to our trade commissioner service will also help Ukrainian businesses connect with potential Canadian customers.
A second way we can help support and sustain Ukraine’s economy is by looking for opportunities to work with Ukraine’s agricultural sector. Ukraine and Canada are among the world’s Top 5 wheat exporters. Notwithstanding the war, Ukrainian farmers have planted crops in 70 per cent of the country’s arable land.
Given the Russian offensive in eastern regions of the country, a looming challenge to the Ukrainian economy may be a shortage of agri-food processing and exporting capacity for the resulting fall harvest. Here, Canadian food processors, equipment manufacturers and others in the agri-food sector may be able to help.
During his recent visit to Ukraine, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau pledged that the government would help Ukraine find ways to export grain that it has in storage and is ready to ship. Here, again, Canadian businesses, those in the transportation and logistics sectors, may be able to offer some assistance.
Finally, a third area where we should seek to expand bilateral business ties is the energy sector. Russia’s invasion has had a seismic effect on global energy markets, particularly in terms of oil and gas. Both Ukraine and Canada have called for the acceleration of the energy transition to renewable and low-emission resources.
In this, we must deal with both geopolitical and geological realities. Canadian companies have been working for years with Ukrainian partner agencies to help reduce reliance on Russian resources, including uranium. This work continues even now, and it has never been more important to Ukraine or to the rest of Europe.
Russian forces have damaged – and in some cases destroyed – vital energy infrastructure in Ukraine. Hence their greatest need may be for Canadian engineering and construction companies to help with the rebuilding and recovery effort both now and, as Ms. Kovaliv asserts proudly, “after the victory.”
All of us look forward to the day when Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity have been restored, and when circumstances allow business leaders to travel to Kyiv and meet with their Ukrainian counterparts. In the interim, the best way for Canada to help Ukraine – outside of military support – is to support their economy.
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VANCOUVER – Canada’s labour minister says striking grain terminal workers in Metro Vancouver and their employers have reached a tentative labour deal.
Steven MacKinnon announced the agreement between Grain Workers Union Local 333 and the Vancouver Terminal Elevators’ Association in a post on social media platform X, but provided no other details.
The union confirmed the tentative deal in a statement on Facebook, saying its members will conduct the ratification vote by Oct. 4.
The notification from the union also says picket lines were to be removed Saturday and members will return to work pending ratification, ending the strike that had paralyzed grain shipments from Metro Vancouver’s port.
The dispute had previously led to picket lines going up at six Metro Vancouver grain terminals on Tuesday as about 600 workers went on strike.
Canadian grain producers had urged a resolution in the dispute, noting about 52 per cent of the country’s grains moved through Metro Vancouver terminals last year en route to being exported.
Farmers say the strike, happening during crop harvesting, would result in as much as $35 million per day in lost exports.
The Western Grain Elevator Association said on Friday that talks had stalled after two days of negotiations this week, with the employer saying it had increased its offers to settle “outstanding issues.”
The employers group had said they’ve reached the end of their “financial ability to conclude an agreement that industry can absorb” with the last offer, and it was up to the federally appointed mediator to report the results to MacKinnon for the next steps.
MacKinnon says in his tweet that both parties put in “the work necessary to get a deal done.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 28, 2024.
TORONTO – Canada’s main stock index dipped lower Friday despite strength in energy stocks, while U.S. markets were mixed as the Dow eked out another record but tech stocks dragged.
The mood Friday was mixed after a strong week for equities in both Canada and the U.S., said Andrew Buntain, vice-president and portfolio manager at Fiduciary Trust Canada.
The S&P/TSX composite index closed down 77.01 points at 23,956.82, one day after it . It closed over 24,000 for the first time on Thursday.
The strength this past week wasn’t just in North American markets, noted Buntain, as Chinese stocks enjoyed a rally after the country’s central banks announced a suite of measures intended to boost the economy.
Meanwhile, an undercurrent of broadening strength continued this week as investors spread out their interest beyond a narrow set of tech giants, said Buntain.
“Some of the sectors that have been ignored for several years have been some of the better performers this year,” he said.
“We’re very encouraged by that.”
In New York on Friday, the Dow Jones industrial average was up 137.89 points at 42,313. The S&P 500 index was down 7.20 points at 5,738.17 after setting an all-time high on Thursday, while the Nasdaq composite was down 70.70 points at 18,119.59.
A report Friday on one of the U.S. central bank’s preferred measures of inflation — the personal consumption expenditures price index — showed continued cooling.
The Federal Reserve started lowering its key interest rate last week, and is expected to keep going this fall and into 2025.
However, the Fed’s next interest rate decision isn’t until November, noted Buntain, so there’s plenty of data for the central bank to take in yet — including next week’s labour report.
The job market has been an increasingly key focus for the central bank after recent reports showed cooling in that area of the economy. Friday’s report also showed consumer spending in August didn’t meet economists’ expectations.
In Canada, where the Bank of Canada is set for its next rate decision later in October, Friday brought a GDP report that was a little stronger than expected, said Buntain.
“The Bank of Canada has already delivered three cuts and signalled maybe some further reductions,” he said.
If inflation continues to move lower, Buntain added, the Bank of Canada could even announce an outsized half-percentage-point cut, echoing the Fed’s move last week.
The Canadian dollar traded for 74.08 cents US compared with 74.22 cents US on Thursday.
The November crude oil contract was up 51 cents at US$68.18 per barrel and the November natural gas contract was up 15 cents at US$2.90 per mmBTU.
The December gold contract was down US$26.80 at US$2,668.10 an ounce and the December copper contract was down four cents at US$4.60 a pound.
— With files from The Associated Press
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 27, 2024.
OTTAWA – Statistics Canada says real gross domestic product grew 0.2 per cent in July, following essentially no change in June, helped by strength in the retail trade sector.
The agency says the growth came as services-producing industries grew 0.2 per cent for the month.
The retail trade sector was the largest contributor to overall growth in July as it gained one per cent, helped by the motor vehicles and parts dealers subsector which gained 2.8 per cent.
The public sector aggregate, which includes the educational services, health care and social assistance, and public administration sectors, gained 0.3 per cent, while the finance and insurance sector rose 0.5 per cent.
Meanwhile, goods-producing industries gained 0.1 per cent in July as the utilities sector rose 1.3 per cent and the manufacturing sector grew 0.3 per cent.
Statistics Canada’s early estimate for August suggests real GDP for the month was essentially unchanged, as increases in oil and gas extraction and the public sector were offset by decreases in manufacturing and transportation and warehousing.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 27, 2024.
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