Prime Minister Carney to open Canada’s first investment summit in Toronto

Prime Minister Mark Carney will welcome global investors to Toronto on Monday for Canada’s first investment summit, an event aimed at attracting new investment to the country. Hundreds of executives and global asset managers are expected to examine major projects at different stages of development.

Carney, federal cabinet ministers and premiers from across Canada will present investment opportunities in sectors including energy, infrastructure and critical minerals during the two-day summit. The event begins Monday evening with a gala dinner at the Art Gallery of Ontario that is closed to the public and media.

Speaking at a Sunday reception for Canadian business leaders and politicians, Carney said several deals had already been signed. He said Canada has the energy, resources, talent, technology and capital sought by the world, and described trust as a strength that cannot be measured on a balance sheet, in an apparent jab at U.S. President Donald Trump.

Investors will meet with the prime minister and other officials at the downtown Four Seasons Hotel on Tuesday for presentations on Canada’s investment landscape. The summit is a key part of Carney’s plan to stimulate $1 trillion in investment in Canada over the next five years. He said attendees may not always agree, but share an understanding of where Canada is headed, pointing to what he called a new consensus from Iqaluit to Victoria, Quebec City and St. John’s. He said Canada would build more, trade more domestically and internationally, and create more sustainable prosperity at home.

Ontario Premier Doug Ford said invitees are coming from Kuwait, Malaysia, the Netherlands, Singapore, Qatar, Norway, Japan and Australia. He said the summit is intended to build relationships, open doors and make the case for Ontario as an investable jurisdiction. Fifteen major Ontario projects are being offered, including projects involving energy production and transmission, critical minerals and mining, artificial intelligence and advanced manufacturing.

Civil-society groups say the summit is bringing together business leaders they believe are worsening global crises. Labour unions, Indigenous leaders, climate advocates and housing advocates plan a Monday demonstration under the banner “The Many vs. The Money” and say they intend to directly intervene with attendees. Organizers oppose what they describe as Carney’s plan to put Canada’s economic future in the hands of CEOs and cite concerns about public services, pipelines and arms manufacturing.

A source familiar with the planned events, who was not authorized to speak publicly, confirmed to The Canadian Press that former Conservative prime minister Stephen Harper will deliver closing remarks at the summit.