On Monday, February 24, the Ghislain Dufour Business Forum welcomed Benjamin Bélair, Quebec's delegate in Washington, John Parisella, Senior Advisor at NATIONAL, and economist Julien Provencher-Proulx, Senior Director of Public Affairs and Corporate Communications at NATIONAL, for a special panel on Canada-U.S. relations. More specifically, the event aimed to discuss how Quebec businesses can prepare to face the turbulence marking the start of U.S. President Donald Trump's second term. The discussion was moderated by Mirabel Paquette, Partner and Senior Vice-President, Corporate Communications at NATIONAL's Montreal office.
Right away, Julien Provencher-Proulx reassured participants in a friendly way by using the origins of the ingredients in an "American" hamburger to illustrate how integrated our economies are and how perfectly they accommodate this contemporary way of operating. Canada, the United States, and Mexico are all present in the recipe! On a more serious note, Mr. Provencher-Proulx raised the hypothesis of unfavorable long-term consequences that could lead to a 2.6% contraction of the Canadian economy (the contraction was 5% during the last major recession). Such a scenario would by no means signal the collapse of our economy, far from it. But a minimum of preparation is necessary to face adversity.
Our three panelists unanimously agreed that Quebec businesses must define a strategy and develop an action plan to deal with any eventuality. Wisdom dictates consolidating current business relationships with American clients and suppliers. Americans are the best influencers among their own compatriots! The possibility of collaborating with companies operating in different sectors should also be considered in order to increase the impact of representations made to U.S. authorities. And yes, we must be ready to actively communicate the reciprocal benefits of an integrated Canada-U.S. economy.
Quebec's delegate in Washington, Benjamin Bélair, is adamant: President Trump will continue to put pressure on us; for him, the global trade order must be restructured. Thus, the imposition of tariff measures on Canadian exports remains highly likely despite the inflationary nature of such a measure. According to John Parisella, we should not be surprised by the adoption of protectionist policies and must accept the unpredictability of the current administration.
The three panelists view the future with cautious optimism. They share the view that Canada and Quebec will continue to have the United States as their main trading partner for a long time to come. Once the current shock has passed, significant opportunities will present themselves to those who have prepared to seize them. Mr. Bélair cited critical minerals that Americans greatly need to support the growth of their economy as an example. He emphasized that the defense, microprocessor, energy, aerospace, and artificial intelligence sectors are particularly promising. Quebec and Canada have the knowledge and industrial capacity to seize these opportunities.
Quebec's delegations to the United States are able to support our businesses in preparing for new business opportunities. They do this through information sharing, activating contacts, or accompanying them in organizing business meetings. As for Quebec's delegate in Washington, Mr. Bélair works to promote our interests at the heart of global power. The strength of Quebec's network is the envy of many other Canadian provinces.
It should be recalled that, in this capacity, Mr. Bélair is responsible for Quebec's bilateral relations with the U.S. federal government (Administration and agencies, as well as Congress) and the greater Washington, D.C. area. His mandate is to follow the legislative activity, programs, and positions of the U.S. federal government in order to raise awareness among his American partners of the interests shared by Quebec and the United States, which he has been doing since 1978.
Generous with their time, Messrs. Bélair, Parisella, and Provencher-Proulx participated in a question period moderated by Alexe Constantineau, Associate at NATIONAL's Montreal office. Our guests then met with Forum members during a cocktail reception where lively discussions continued.
Pictured in the usual order: Alexe Constantineau, Associate at NATIONAL, John Parisella, Senior Advisor at NATIONAL, Benjamin Bélair, Quebec's delegate in Washington, Julien Provencher-Proulx, Economist and Senior Director of Public Affairs and Corporate Communications at NATIONAL, Martin Daraiche, President and Managing Partner of NATIONAL, and Mirabel Paquette, Partner, Senior Vice-President, Corporate Communications at NATIONAL and Coordinator of the Ghislain Dufour Forum.
About Forum Ghislain Dufour du monde des affairesR
The Ghislain Dufour Business Forum allows business people to meet and engage in dialogue with Quebec and Canadian political and business figures, political advisors or high-level public administrators on an apolitical and non-partisan basis. For more information, visit the event page.
