Alberta premier eyes Quebec trade amid tariff uncertainty

Alberta Premier Danielle Smith will be meeting officials in Quebec as well as Ottawa to come up with a strategy about how to boost interprovincial trade.

Alberta Premier Danielle Smith is heading east for a three-day trip in hopes of boosting provincial trade with Quebec and international partners.

Smith will start by travelling to Montreal where she’ll meet with business leaders from Quebec’s private sector.

Her meetings will be focus on a variety of industries, including energy, manufacturing, aviation and transportation.

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The premier says Alberta and Quebec have natural synergies across many sectors, which will help set the stage for more collaboration.

According to the province, the meetings will highlight Alberta as trade partner, as well as identifying opportunities to remove red tape and barriers to interprovincial trade.

The premier notes there’s a common goal of fortifying trade partnerships to better withstand external shocks.

“As a nation, we are facing a great amount of uncertainty when it comes to our relationship with the United States and the broader geopolitical climate abroad. The time to be even more emboldened in our efforts to unite as a country is now,” said Smith in a statement.

Premier Smith will continue her business meetings in Montreal Thursday before heading to Ottawa on Friday.

There she’ll meet with international representatives looking to increase trade with Alberta amid the current trade uncertainties.

The premier is also listed as a keynote speaker at the Canada Strong and Free Conference taking place this week in Ottawa.