By Pat Bell
Minister of Jobs, Tourism and Innovation Feb. 24, 2012

VICTORIA - Trade with Asia is crucial to British Columbia's prosperity. As the developed world struggles to recover from a debilitating recession and lingering uncertainty, virtually all economic growth is taking place in the emerging markets.

By 2050, Asia will account for 50 per cent of global economic activity. As Canada's Pacific province, B.C. is perfectly positioned to develop even closer ties with this lucrative market.

On Monday, I will travel to Ottawa to attend the annual federal-provincial-territorial meeting of ministers responsible for international trade. One of the items that will be discussed during that meeting will be Prime Minister Stephen Harper's recent trade trip to China. A particularly pleasing result of that trip was the announcement of a Foreign Investment Promotion and Protection Agreement. Of course, trade barriers still exist and much more needs to be done.

Despite those strictures, B.C. has been phenomenally successful in opening new markets in Asia, particularly China. For the first time, exports in 2011 to the Pacific Rim outstripped those to the United States. This success in Asia chimes perfectly with our strategy set out in 'Canada Starts Here: The BC Jobs Plan'.

The Jobs Plan identifies a number of key Asian markets and in 2011 exports to those countries increased considerably. B.C. has the most diverse export market base in Canada. The value of goods exported to China reached $5.1 billion, a 24 per cent increase over 2010 and a staggering 442 per cent increase since 2001.

Perhaps the most remarkable success story is that of lumber. Since 2003, at the start of a joint provincial-federal-industry market development program, lumber exports to China have risen by more than 1,500 per cent.

Part of that success in Asia is based on steps we have taken as a government, such as investing in infrastructure that helps companies efficiently get their goods to international markets. The Province has committed $50 million to improve rail access to Port Metro Vancouver's DeltaPort and $15 million to the Port of Prince Rupert's Road Rail Utility Corridor.

We are a province that relies heavily on trade and investment for economic growth and job creation. The BC Jobs Plan will continue to build on these achievements. We are committed to doubling B.C.'s international presence, and are working with the federal government to establish new trade offices in Mumbai and Chandigarh. At home we have opened the Asia Pacific Business Centre in Vancouver and devoted an entire division of the Ministry of Jobs, Tourism and Innovation to growing economic ties with Asia and other priority markets.

Asia, however, is not the sole focus of the Ottawa meeting. We will also discuss negotiations aimed at achieving a Canada-European Union Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA). The EU is the largest trading bloc in the world with a combined gross domestic product of $17 trillion and a population of 500 million.

Successfully concluding this agreement will see Canada and therefore B.C. gain preferential access to an extremely valuable market. It is estimated that CETA could boost the Canadian economy by $12 billion annually and create 80,000 new jobs.

Trade, whether it be with Asia, Europe or anywhere else, is the lifeblood of this province and our message is clear: B.C. is open for business.