From Fortune · Rob Gillies · · 2m
Carney's pitch: Canada is more than America's neighbour
With Trump's tariffs biting, Canada gathered 300 investors who manage $120 trillion and made its case for money flowing north.
In brief
With Trump's tariffs biting, Canada gathered 300 investors who manage $120 trillion and made its case for money flowing north. Canada is selling stability and rule of law as the product, betting that trust wins capital when the U.S. looks unpredictable. Originally reported by Fortune.
Money south, money north
Trump wants factories and capital moving into the United States. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney is betting he can pull billions the other way.
$120 trillion in one room
About 300 CEOs and senior executives gathered at a Toronto Four Seasons for Carney's Canada Investment Summit. Their firms manage more than $120 trillion in assets.
More than a neighbour
Carney's pitch leans on energy, critical minerals, an educated workforce and trade deals reaching roughly 1.5 billion consumers.
“Canada is about so much more than being next to the United States.”
He knows this room
Carney ran two central banks, spent 13 years at Goldman Sachs and chaired Bloomberg L.P. and Brookfield. He met the CEOs of Macquarie and Temasek on Monday.
The tariff wall went up
Trade talks collapsed Aug. 21. Trump then hit about $20 billion in Canadian goods with 50% tariffs, banned some imports and moved to lock Canada out of U.S. government contracts.
Ottawa says it can hold
Finance Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne promised support for hit industries and workers, while Carney aims to double overseas exports within a decade.
“We have the wherewithal to support our industries, to support our workers for as long as it takes.”
A jolt, not a wound
Invest in Canada chair Dominic Barton says fears investors would stay away never materialized, and the trade war is shaking Canada out of complacency.
“This is a good jolt. Let's use it.”
Selling trust
Carney is asking investors to look past the trade war and bet on predictability, contrasting Canadian rule of law with an erratic Washington.
“That combination is pretty rare in the world. And it's an attractive combination.”
Bell's $50 billion bet
Bell Canada will quadruple a Saskatchewan AI data centre toward 1.2 gigawatts, a C$50 billion project Carney called the province's largest capital investment ever.
“On Canadian ground with Canadian power, and Canadian law.”
Next stop, Europe
Ottawa will fast-track tax rulings for investments above $1 billion. Carney heads to the European Parliament this week, chasing a wider partnership with the EU.
The main idea
Canada is selling stability and rule of law as the product, betting that trust wins capital when the U.S. looks unpredictable.
