Premier David Eby said concerns about security and changing environmental norms in Asia promise significant opportunities for B.C.Counting early travels by Minister of State for Trade, Jagrup Brar, to Vietnam, the trade mission started May 25 and is scheduled to end June 7 when Eby returns home from Singapore. Brar, as well as cabinet colleagues Josie Osborne and Brenda Bailey joined Eby while he was travelling in Japan and South Korea.
The U.S. and China are B.C.’s two most important trading partners and any conflict between them would very likely impact the province’s economy. Experts say the war in Ukraine has previewed potential energy price spikes in case of conflict between U.S. and China. China is also among the leading suppliers of critical minerals for the production of key technologies such electric vehicle batteries, giving that country’s authoritarian government leverage.
“So they partner with a landowner and build rental housing for the landowner and assist with financing to construct the building and then lease the building from the landowner for 30 years and then operate that rental housing,” Eby said. “Using that model, they have 1.2 million units under management in Tokyo and they are a very successful property management company.”