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Canada province seeks Chinese partners

By Zhang Fangdian (chinadaily.com.cn)
Updated: 2010-02-01 15:30
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The New Brunswick province of Canada, which has been widely seen as the Atlantic gateway on commerce, is looking for business opportunities with China.

The local government has introduced preferential policies to solicit foreign investment, said the visiting commerce minister Victor Boudreau on Friday at the 2010 Sino-Canada Investment Promotion Fair in Shenzhen.

According to a government plan, the corporate tax rate of New Brunswick is expected to be cut to 8 percent by July 2012 from the current 11 percent, making the province one of the most tax-competitive jurisdictions in Canada, said Boudreau.

In general, the Canada's corporate income tax rate will fall from 18.5 percent in 2010 to 15 percent in 2012, which will be less than half of the US rate.

The province, which borders the US and another Canadian province Quebec, traditionally has an economy based on the exploitation of its natural resources, including forestry and ore, but services and manufacturing have emerged as dominant sectors.

In the sector of information and telecommunications technology, at least 650 companies employed over 30,000 people, generating annual revenues of about $2.1 billion in 2008.

Meanwhile, manufacturers in New Brunswick, which have adopted innovative and advanced processing technologies to meet the most stringent international quality standards, export products valued over $437 million each year around the world.

Dozens of companies from Canada and Shenzhen attended the fair, which aimed at giving detailed introduction of the commercial environment, economic policies, mineral resources and other investment projects in New Brunswick province.

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Jim Cunningham, president of Cardwell Compost Company, a major supplier of certified organic soil amendments and mulches in Canada, said his products have gained wide attention in the fair.

"The next step I will do is to get the official certificates both from Canada and China. Then it won't take long to see our products in Chinese markets." said Cunningham.

"China is a good place for me to expand my business. There are a lot of people who now start to think more about environment and people are more aware of the dangers of chemicals in their food," he added.

The fair was hosted by the Department of Commerce of New Brunswick province and the Canadian Consulate General in Guangzhou, and organized by the Atlantic Canada Business Association.

A Chinese inspection group will leave on Mar 15 for New Brunswick to study the markets for petroleum and minerals and a conference focusing on petroleum and mineral resources will be held in November this year, according to the organizer.