China and Canada are stepping up economic engagement and taking steps to stabilize trade ties, extending key market access and tariff arrangements through 2028 amid efforts to rebuild bilateral cooperation.
The two countries agreed to extend preferential market access arrangements for Canadian canola meal, peas, lobster and crab until the end of 2028. Canada also agreed to extend tariff remissions for certain Chinese steel and aluminum products through 2028.
On Monday, Chinese Vice-Premier He Lifeng, Canadian Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne, and International Trade Minister Maninder Sidhu co-chaired the second China-Canada Economic and Financial Strategic Dialogue in Vancouver.
The two sides agreed to deepen financial sector cooperation, including on market access for financial services, and they signed agreements to strengthen cooperation between their financial ministries and regulators.
Jeff Mahon, former deputy director of the China division at Global Affairs Canada, said the latest developments should be viewed in the context of sustained engagement between the two countries through the year.
"Canada and China have been working diligently throughout 2026 to implement the consensus reached by leaders in January," Mahon told China Daily.
During Prime Minister Mark Carney's visit to China in January, the two countries announced a new strategic partnership and reached a preliminary arrangement on bilateral trade issues, while agreeing to revive the JETC and strengthen cooperation in areas including finance, energy and agriculture.
Last week, Chinese Commerce Minister Wang Wentao and Canadian International Trade Minister Maninder Sidhu co-chaired the Joint Economic and Trade Commission (JETC) in Beijing.
The meeting, held at the ministerial level for the first time, focused on bilateral trade issues and opportunities to expand economic cooperation.
"The recent Joint Economic and Trade Consultation (JETC) led by Chinese Commerce Minister Wang Wentao and Canadian Trade Minister Maninder Sidhu is an important milestone in the process to stabilize economic ties and build a strong foundation for improved bilateral relations," he said.
Many senior and working-level engagements have taken place this year to identify areas of mutual benefit and expand cooperation, including on energy and agriculture, Mahon said.
The latest arrangements are a concrete step for Canadian exporters, said Jiang Wenran, founding director of the China Institute at the University of Alberta and president of the Canada-China Energy and Environment Forum.
"This was a meaningful step — not a breakthrough in itself, but the restoration of a working mechanism that had gone dormant for years," Jiang said, referring to the latest JETC meeting between the two countries.
The ministerial-level meeting signaled that both sides were treating economic stabilization as a deliberate strategy, Jiang told China Daily.
"The real test will be whether the working groups beneath the JETC actually deliver on the technical files: certification, customs, standards and sectoral access," he said.
Jiang said the continued market access for Canadian agricultural and seafood products was particularly significant for exporters.
"This is significant and concrete," he said. "For Western Canadian farmers and Atlantic coastal communities, these are not marginal products — they are livelihoods."
Since the arrangements took effect in March, Canadian canola seed exports to China rose 84 percent to C$1.91 billion (US$1.35 billion), while canola meal exports more than doubled to C$390 million; pea exports tripled to C$345 million and lobster exports grew 57 percent to C$200 million, Jiang said.
"Extending this certainty through 2028 lets exporters plan, reinvest and rebuild buyer relationships instead of bracing for a year-end cliff," he said.
Jiang also described the parallel tariff arrangements as a form of "managed reciprocity", with both sides using negotiated arrangements to address trade differences rather than relying on blanket retaliation.
"It signals a more mature phase — handling trade frictions through technical arrangements rather than symbolic tariffs," he said.
Mahon said the progress should be seen as part of a longer process of rebuilding trust between the two countries.
"Prior to the January 2026 leaders meeting, Canada-China relations were not meeting (their) full potential and were suffering from outstanding trade irritants," Mahon said. "A healthy bilateral relationship takes time to build."
"It requires mutual trust and understanding reached through sustained dialogue, which is then made practical through policy," he said.
The two countries have also expanded cooperation beyond trade, including through their first ministerial-level energy dialogue, Mahon said.
Canada's Minister of Energy and Natural Resources Tim Hodgson met virtually with Wang Hongzhi, China's administrator of the National Energy Administration, for the dialogue, which Mahon said demonstrated the two countries' commitment to fostering mutually beneficial cooperation.
"Canada and China have complementary strengths in the energy sector that can be leveraged to deliver tangible results," Mahon said.
Jiang said energy could become an important area for expanding bilateral economic cooperation.
"Canada has the resources — oil, LNG (liquefied natural gas), uranium, hydro, critical minerals, and growing renewables capacity; China has the demand, the manufacturing scale and leading capabilities in storage, grid integration and civil nuclear supply chains," Jiang said.
"The smarter path is not simply 'export more commodities,' but to link resource sales with joint investment in Canadian processing, refining and manufacturing capacity," he said.
Jiang also said China would be important to Canada's broader efforts to diversify its trade beyond the United States.
Ottawa has set a goal of increasing exports to China by 50 percent by 2030, while its broader target is to double exports to non-US markets by the end of 2035.
"China is indispensable to that target," Jiang said, adding that China is Canada's second-largest single-country trading partner.
"No other market combines that scale with demand for Canadian food, energy and materials," he said.
He said cooperation also could expand into electric vehicles, batteries and advanced manufacturing.
"The 49,000-vehicle quota is a starting point, not an industrial strategy," Jiang said, arguing that market access could be paired with joint ventures, local assembly, battery-cell manufacturing and component supply chains in Canada.
Mahon said the latest progress would ultimately need to be followed by practical cooperation and continued dialogue.
"These high-level engagements can send signals to businesses in both countries on areas where trade and investment cooperation is encouraged," Mahon said. "This will help boost confidence in the future of Canada-China relations."
