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TORONTO — <\/span>U.S. President Donald Trump wants factories and investment moving south to the United States<\/a>. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney is betting he can make billions flow north.<\/p>\n About 300 CEOs and senior executives from some of the world\u2019s biggest investment firms will descend on the Four Seasons in Yorkville, a tony Toronto enclave of high-end restaurants and designer boutiques, for Carney\u2019s Canada Investment Summit this week.<\/p>\n The investors collectively manage more than $120 trillion in assets, underscoring the scale of capital Carney hopes to tap as Canada tries to attract billions in new investment and reduce its economic dependence on the United States<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cCanada is about so much more than being next to the United States,\u201d Carney said at a news conference last week in Banff, Alberta. \u201cWe have what the world wants.\u201d<\/p>\n Carney pointed to Canada\u2019s vast energy and critical-mineral resources, its highly educated workforce and trade agreements that give businesses based in Canada access to roughly 1.5 billion consumers around the world.<\/p>\n He said the turnout showed investors were interested in Canada on its own merits.<\/p>\n \u201cThey are coming because of Canada,\u201d he said. \u201cIf they wanted to go to the United States, they would go to the United States.\u201d<\/p>\n Few people know this crowd better than Carney<\/a>. He ran the central banks of Canada and England<\/a>, spent 13 years at Goldman Sachs and later chaired the boards of Bloomberg L.P. and Brookfield Asset Management, putting him very much in his element among the global investors and money managers gathering at the Four Seasons.<\/p>\n Carney will court that capital Monday in separate meetings with the CEOs of Sydney-based Macquarie Group, whose asset-management arm is the world\u2019s largest infrastructure investment manager, and Singapore state-owned Temasek Holdings, a major global investment company.<\/p>\n A Canadian official described the summit as the largest gathering of investment decision-makers ever assembled in Canada, alongside Canadian CEOs bringing projects at varying stages of readiness. But the official cautioned that the summit is not expected to produce a rush of deals this week, with the most significant results likely to emerge over the next 12 to 18 months. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly about the matter.<\/p>\n But the summit comes at a critical moment for Canada. Trade talks collapsed Aug. 21<\/a>, and then Trump imposed 50% tariffs on about $20 billion in Canadian goods and Canada retaliated. Washington then raised the stakes again, announcing bans on some Canadian imports and moving to shut Canadian products out of large, long-term U.S. government contracts.<\/p>\n Trump\u2019s tariffs and efforts to shift manufacturing<\/a> south of the border are undermining what was long one of the country\u2019s biggest attractions to foreign investors: reliable access to the enormous U.S. market under continental free trade.<\/p>\n Carney and business leaders will urge global investors to look past the trade war and make a bigger bet on Canada.<\/p>\n Carney is drawing a pointed contrast with Trump\u2019s America, pitching Canada as a stable, rules-based alternative to an increasingly unpredictable United States.<\/p>\n Investors coming to Canada will find \u201ca country that respects rule of law and a country that is reliable,\u201d Carney said.<\/p>\n \u201cThat combination is pretty rare in the world,\u201d he said. \u201cAnd it\u2019s an attractive combination.\u201d<\/p>\n Carney sharpened the message Sunday, telling Canadian business leaders that Canada\u2019s greatest strength was something \u201cthat cannot be found on any balance sheet: trust.\u201d<\/p>\n John Graham, CEO of CPP Investments, one of the world\u2019s largest institutional investors and the manager of Canada Pension Plan assets, is helping host the summit. He said the fund compares investment opportunities in Canada with those around the world.<\/p>\n \u201cThe conversation about Canada is changing,\u201d Graham said.<\/p>\n The summit is aimed at matching global capital \u2014 including Canada\u2019s pension funds, which rank among the world\u2019s biggest institutional investors \u2014 with major projects in critical minerals, technology, defense, advanced manufacturing and energy. <\/p>\n Carney\u2019s private meetings will be tailored to investors\u2019 portfolios and the types of projects they are interested in financing, according to a Canadian official.<\/p>\n BlackRock CEO Larry Fink and Blackstone President Jon Gray will headline a public discussion on global capital, while former Conservative Prime Minister Stephen Harper is scheduled to close the summit. Carney then heads to Europe, where he will address the European Parliament later in the week as Canada seeks a broader strategic partnership with the EU<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n