Nation inks 25 deals with Ontario province

China and Canada’s Ontario province have inked 25 deals worth almost C$600 million ($472 million), mainly in technology, e-commerce, finance and healthcare sectors, as the two countries continue to deepen economic and trade ties.

Highlights of the signed deals included technology giant Tencent’s cooperation with Ontario’s OTT Financial Group to build a business accelerator center in Toronto and to develop the tech company’s cloud market, as well as China CITIC Bank’s agreement to provide education services to Ontario’s U Education Group.

“Partnerships with international leaders like China are critical to Ontario’s economic success,” said Kathleen Wynne, premier of Ontario, Canada’s largest province by population and economy.

“Ontario’s diverse and innovative economy makes it one of the best, most competitive places in the world to invest, and we encourage Chinese businesses to take advantage of what Ontario has to offer,” she said.

In 2016, China was Canada’s second largest trading partner and its second largest source of imported merchandise.

Ontario’s trade with China has surged by nearly 40 percent over the past five years, totaling C$42 billion in 2016.

Science and technology are two priority areas of cooperation. In these sectors, bilateral trade between China and Ontario accounted for 42 percent of the total, according to the Ontario government.

Lepu Medical Technology Co signed an agreement with Ontario’s Communication & Power Industries, valued at C$2.85 million, under which the latter would supply Lepu with a high-voltage generator product a key component in angiography and cardiovascular X-ray systems for medical applications.

“Ontario spends about C$50-55 billion every year to strengthen the medical sector,” Michael Chan, Ontario’s minister for international trade, told China Daily.

“It’s good to reach out to the world including China. As Chinese population is aging, there’s tremendous potential for Ontario and China to collaborate in bioscience, medical devices and healthcare.”