The Secretary of Economy, Ildefonso Guajardo Villarreal, recently met with Philippe Couillard, Prime Minister of the Canadian Province of Quebec, who, accompanied by a delegation of 70 entrepreneurs, made a working visit to Mexico as part of the 35th anniversary of the establishment of the General Delegation of Quebec in Mexico.

During this meeting, the Secretary of Economy and the Prime Minister of Quebec discussed the state of the bilateral trade relationship; they stressed the productive integration achieved by Mexico and Quebec in industries such as transportation and aerospace; and they recognized the importance of taking advantage of the business opportunities that exist in sectors such as information technology and hydroelectric power.

Both officials welcomed the conclusion of the negotiations on the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPP); they emphasized that this agreement will strengthen the integration of production processes in North America and will also provide greater opportunities for trade and investment in the Asia-Pacific region.

Guajardo Villarreal welcomed the announcement of investments of more than two billion dollars that Quebec made in the infrastructure sector in Mexico over the next five years. He also noted that the signing of several agreements between that Canadian province and Mexico will contribute to strengthen the cooperation in strategic sectors such as aerospace, creative industries and information technology.

Mexico and Quebec are strategic partners. Since 1993, a year prior to the entry into force of the NAFTA, the bilateral trade was multiplied by nine, rising from 342 million dollars to 3,058 million dollars in 2014. Mexico is the 1st trading partner of Quebec in Latin America and Quebec is the 2nd trading partner of Mexico among the Canadian provinces.