(Montreal) Quebec companies that export would do well to depend less on the United States and turn to other foreign markets, according to the president of Investissement Québec (IQ) International.
Exports from Quebec companies have jumped by about 25% over the past five years. However, they remain very concentrated south of the border, Hubert Bolduc explained at a conference of the Chamber of Commerce of Metropolitan Montreal on Friday morning.
“I think that for exporting companies, the American presence acts a bit like a drug,” he told an audience of business people who had come to attend a discussion on the economic outlook.
“In the sense that it’s easy, it’s going well,” he continued. “70% of our exports go to the United States. It’s done in a relatively easy framework in English, you cross the border. But the problem, like drugs, is at the end it’s not going so well. And then you become dependent on the United States.”
According to him, this comfortable situation makes it less likely to take additional risks to conquer other regions of the world with very different characteristics.
In a press scrum, Mr. Bolduc indicated that he wanted to launch a “call for caution” and “diversification” among Quebec companies. Following the American presidential election, they could be given a hard time.
“We can have presidencies that have already made outbursts that have hurt businesses. Tariffs on lumber, on aluminum that appear overnight, that can be difficult. […] “Being dependent on a client, no matter how big, is always a threat for an entrepreneur,” he told reporters.
Mr. Bolduc believes that efforts are necessary to convince local companies to move to other continents, particularly Europe, “which offers exceptional potential,” according to him.
The new carbon tariffs or customs will give Quebec entrepreneurs who manufacture here with hydroelectricity a definite advantage over Europe.
Hubert Bolduc, President of Investissement Québec International
“Why have the Europeans benefited more than us from the Canada-Europe Free Trade Agreement? I think they are bolder and they want to diversify. And I think we should do the same thing,” he argues.
The work to “reverse the trend” involves, in particular, more education for companies to show the advantages and opportunities of investing in the European market, says the head of the IQ subsidiary which supports both foreign and Quebec companies in their projects.
Battery sector: “it’s going well”
During this panel, in which the former provincial minister and current federal senator, Clément Gignac, also took part as a speaker, the battery sector was also discussed.
Mr. Bolduc enthusiastically defended the development of this industry in Quebec, despite the headwinds it is currently facing. He invited the public to visit the Bécancour industrial park in Centre-du-Québec to see how “it’s going well.”
“Look at what’s happening here, it’s going to blow your legs away,” said the manager, referring to the construction sites for the GM-POSCO and Ford cathode plants.
Beyond the difficulties Northvolt is encountering and the possible delays in the construction of its factory on the South Shore of Montreal, we must “look at the battery sector as a whole,” Mr. Bolduc told the media.
“From mining to metal processing, […] “There is more than just Northvolt. Yes, the media focus is very concentrated on Northvolt, and that is normal because it is a big project that does indeed involve a certain level of risk, but the battery sector is not limited to Northvolt alone,” he said.