On Thursday, September 21, 2017, the Canada-European Union Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) provisionally comes into force. CETA is an economic partnership – free trade agreement – negotiated between Canada and the European Union (EU) over the last eight years. It is seen as a gold standard, 21st-century agreement that addresses the full range of issues that involve trade in goods, services, and investment. It is the most comprehensive agreement ever negotiated and signed by either party.
Vancouver is rapidly climbing the ranks of the world’s financial centres – from 33rd on the Global Financial Centre Index in 2008 to 17th in 2017. Three Canadian cities rank among the top 20 of the 2017 Global Financial Centre Index – Toronto (#10), Montreal (#14) and Vancouver (#17).
The Province of British Columbia has successfully issued an Indian Rupee denominated bond on the London Stock Exchange today, making it the first-ever foreign government to issue a bond in the Indian offshore market and strengthening increasingly important trade and investment ties with India, Finance Minister Michael de Jong announced today.
According to the Economist Intelligence Unit’s (EIU) Global Liveability Ranking, which scores 140 cities on five lifestyle categories, six of the top 10 livable cities in the world are in Australia and Canada. Melbourne ranked first, Vienna was second and Vancouver third, with Toronto, Calgary, Adelaide and Perth rounding up the top seven, though the scores differentiating the quality of life in the top 15 to 20 cities were marginal.