Quebec and France have a privileged relationship in terms of trade, but more must be done, Prime Ministers François Legault and Gabriel Attal argued in turn on Friday. Prime Minister Legault is banking on France – and more broadly the European Union – to counterbalance commercial dependence on the United States, at the dawn of an election which is raising fears regarding protectionism.
French Prime Minister Attal concluded his visit to Canadian soil on Friday in Montreal. At the end of the day, he participated in an economic panel with Prime Minister Legault, at the head office of the Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec.
“We currently have $6 billion in trade between Quebec and France. It’s not enough ! », argued François Legault. “We can go much further,” Mr. Attal also said, in relation to the business relationship which unites the two countries.
The Quebec Prime Minister insisted on the importance of “diversifying our exports”, while currently nearly 70% of the province’s exports are destined for the United States. “It doesn’t matter who is elected [à la présidence américaine en fin d’année], there are risks of protectionism,” he said. In this context, France which shares “a common language” and “the same values” is an “ally” for Quebec, believes Mr. Legault.
Prime Minister Attal, for his part, invited us to “look at the geopolitical evolution of the world as a call to secure all of our supply chains with reliable partners and allies”.
Two gateways to major markets
The two heads of government also opened their arms wide to French and Quebec companies that dream of establishing themselves on the other side of the Atlantic.
The French Prime Minister particularly highlighted the presence of “Quebec flagships in France”, such as the Caisse de dépôt, CGI, Boralex or Medicom, and the desire to attract more of them.
“Quebec must be the gateway for French companies to distribute in North America, and conversely, France must be the gateway for Quebec companies that want to export to Europe. It’s give and take,” summarized François Legault.
The Prime Minister of Quebec notably highlighted that French companies that establish themselves here can reduce their carbon footprint thanks to hydroelectricity. The rail sector also has a future in North America, he argued.
“Large American cities will have to build trains, trams, metros. Alstom’s only two competitors are Siemens in Germany and there are the Chinese. There are no big players in the United States. And this means that the Caisse de dépôt is now the largest shareholder of Alstom, so there are a lot of opportunities,” underlined Mr. Legault.