International Trade Minister Maninder Sidhu says a dramatic shift is underway in how Canadian businesses view global markets, with companies increasingly eager to export beyond the United States as the tariff war with Washington continues to disrupt North American supply chains.
Sidhu, drawing on his years as a customs broker, said the private sector’s mindset has fundamentally changed. “For more than a decade, everyone wanted to get product into the U.S.,” he said in an interview. “Now businesses are coming to the government saying, ‘We need help getting into overseas markets.’ Things have shifted dramatically. We’re in a different world now.”
Canada has long struggled to diversify its trade beyond the U.S., where more than 70 per cent of exports consistently flow. But Prime Minister Mark Carney has set an ambitious goal: doubling non-U.S. exports by $300 billion. To get there, Sidhu says the country must rapidly expand and modernize the infrastructure that moves goods across borders.
A centrepiece of that effort is Ottawa’s new $5-billion Trade Diversification Corridors Fund, coupled with a $1-billion Arctic infrastructure fund designed to support both economic and security objectives. Together, the $6 billion in investments will underpin what Sidhu describes as the single biggest push in decades to increase Canada’s trade capacity.
“Right now, we have enough capacity for the next few years,” Sidhu said. “But you’re eventually going to hit a ceiling. You won’t reach the $300-billion target without more infrastructure.” He said the message is coming loudly from CEOs, chambers of commerce and boards of trade: Canada needs more trade-enabling facilities—ports, rail lines, terminals—now.
Sidhu and Transport Minister Steven MacKinnon visited CN Rail’s intermodal terminal in Brampton on Friday, a major inland hub located in Sidhu’s Brampton East riding where billions of dollars in goods move every year. The ministers also met with CN executives as part of the government’s post-budget outreach.
MacKinnon said the interest from provinces, municipalities and industry is already surging. “We’re going to be building trade-enabling infrastructure all over the country over the next seven years,” he said, adding that criteria for project applications will be released in the coming weeks.
Ottawa has not yet disclosed which regions or sectors it intends to prioritize in its global diversification plan, though Sidhu said a comprehensive new trade strategy is “coming very soon.” The federal budget offers some early clues, pointing to potential investments across key corridors—including the Great Lakes–St. Lawrence region, northeastern Quebec, Alberta rail lines, and both port and rail upgrades on the West Coast.
Sidhu said the scale of investment reflects the urgency of the moment. “To build a more resilient and diversified trading nation, we need the infrastructure to match the ambition,” he said.