So far, the linguistic debate in Quebec does not seem to have harmed the attractiveness of Montreal, as feared by several influential personalities in the business community.
The value of foreign investment in Montreal hit a record $1.7 billion in the first six months of the year, according to preliminary data from Montreal International. This follows a record year 2021, when investments peaked at $3.7 billion.
“This demonstrates the extreme resilience of the Montreal economy in relation to the pandemic, but also in relation to the post-pandemic situation, comments Vice-President Foreign Investments, Alexandre Lagarde. We have an economy that is very diversified, with high technology sectors, such as life sciences, computer sciences, aerospace, some of which have been fairly impervious to the crisis. »
A record 57 projects were achieved for the period from January to June 2022. This number is to be compared to the previous record of 40 projects achieved for the same period last year.
The life sciences sector particularly stood out this year, with seven projects worth $321 million. The announcement in April of the establishment of Moderna’s vaccine factory is one of the key events. By way of comparison, this industry generated projects worth 280 million for the whole of 2021.
With economic clouds looming on the horizon in the wake of rising interest rates and soaring inflation and health restrictions in China, the metropolis may well fail to break a new record for the entire year 2022, recognizes Mr. Lagarde. “It is certain that there are elements which can lead to think that there could be a risk of recession, but for the moment the flow of projects is still doing quite well. »
The diversification of the Montreal economy means that all sectors of the economy will not necessarily move in the same direction, nuance Mr. Lagarde. While the technology sector was resilient at the height of the pandemic, aerospace suffered from the collapse in demand for air transport. However, the industry is experiencing a strong recovery.
The French fact
The attractiveness of the metropolis manifests itself despite the linguistic debate which irritates influential voices in the business community.
In June, around 40 business leaders, mainly from the technology sector, sent a letter to the Prime Minister, François Legault, to warn him that “Law 96”, adopted in May, “could create enormous damage to the economy”.
Companies had also expressed their questions to Montreal International last year during the presentation of the bill on the French language. The organization then offered information sessions with the help of a law firm that had analyzed the project.
The adoption of Bill 96 last May raised new questions from Montreal International’s partners, said Mr. Lagarde.
To answer these questions, Montréal International organized a series of meetings between business leaders and representatives of the Office québécois de la langue française to explain the scope of the law. The first meeting took place last week. “I would tell you that what stands out is that it reassures business leaders quite a bit. »
During his “almost 17 years” career at Montreal International, Mr. Lagarde says he has observed that the vast majority of international multinationals respect Quebec’s language legislation.
We must not see the French fact as a brake on the Quebec economy, believes the vice-president. “We see it as a strength. This is one of the advantages of coming to do business in Montreal. The second largest investor in Montreal [après les États-Unis], It’s France. It is certain that the linguistic aspect plays a role in the attractiveness of Montreal for French investments. »