More opportunities lie ahead for Chinese, Canadian businesses: Former diplomat

The Canada China Chamber of Commerce (CCCC) was inaugurated in Toronto on Tuesday.

Based in Toronto, CCCC is a non-profit organization with more than 100 members, most of which are Chinese companies established in Canada.

"Chinese companies doing business in Canada, to some degree, has long been scattered, and their communication with the federal government and governments of provincial and municipal levels is lacking," Li Shengjiao, former Deputy Consul General of the People's Republic of China in Toronto, told People's Daily Online.

"A platform of this kind would definitely help Chinese companies band together and grow in Canada, and the flourish of Chinese businesses would, in turn, create more job opportunities to the local people and bring more tax revenue to the local governments."

According to Chinese official statistics, in 2011 only, overseas Chinese enterprises hired a total of 888,000 foreign workers and paid more than 22 billion U.S. dollars taxes to their investment destinations.

"Because of the sound bilateral relationship between China and Canada and Canada's mature regulations and rules, most Chinese investors see Canada as an ideal place to do business," said Mr. Li.

"Some Canadian companies also have huge demand to tap into the vast Chinese market, despite China's economic slowdown and rising labor costs."

"The CCCC may also build a bridge between the Canadian companies and their potential Chinese partners and businesses," Mr. Li said.

So far, neatly 12,000 Canadian businesses have long been present in various sectors of the Chinese economy, according to Chinese Ambassador to Canada Zhang Junsai.

"Some of the financial institutions have their branches in 50 cities in China, and they are doing very well," Mr. Zhang said in an interview with the Canadian television network CTV recently.

The last couple of years have seen the trade volume between China and Canada growing by 30 percent each year against the backdrop of a gloomy global economy.

Statistics show that China is the only country among Canada's top 10 export markets that has seen continuous growth over the past three years.

Most importantly, there is still much room for growth, as data shows that the bilateral trade accounts for only 1.3 percent of China's foreign trade volume and 5.2 percent of that of Canada.

"The inauguration of the CCCC came at a right time," noted Mr. Li. "It will help facilitate more trade and create more business opportunities for both Chinese and Canadian enterprises."