As U.S. President Donald Trump pushes to redirect manufacturing and capital into the United States, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney is attempting to draw massive foreign investment north.
Approximately 300 top chief executives and senior leaders from global investment funds are assembling at the Four Seasons in Toronto’s Yorkville district for Carney’s Canada Investment Summit.
Participating financiers oversee more than $120 trillion in assets, highlighting the massive capital pool Canada aims to tap to spur new domestic growth and lessen its economic reliance on its southern neighbor.
“Canada is about so much more than being next to the United States,” Carney said. “We have what the world wants.”
Carney highlighted Canada’s rich energy and critical-mineral reserves, its educated workforce, and international trade networks offering access to nearly 1.5 billion consumers. He maintained that the high level of attendance indicates investors view Canada as an attractive location in its own right.
“They are coming because of Canada,” he said. “If they wanted to go to the United States they would go to the United States.”
The Prime Minister is deeply familiar with global finance, having directed the central banks of both Canada and England, spent 13 years at Goldman Sachs, and chaired the boards of Bloomberg L.P. and Brookfield Asset Management.
A Canadian official described the gathering as the largest assembly of major investment decision-makers in the nation’s history, alongside Canadian executive teams presenting ready-to-fund projects.
However, the official noted under condition of anonymity that immediate deals are unlikely this week, with the most substantial outcomes expected to materialize over the next 12 to 18 months.