Are the investments by wealthy Chinese individuals and corporations actually a form of economic warfare?
The ever-growing presence of Chinese investment in Canada—and especially in Metro Vancouver—leads to some perfectly valid, if rather disquieting, questions as to what mainland investors exactly want from Canada aside from its property, according to Vancouver Sun columnist Douglas Todd.
In a recent piece, Todd cited various studies that put the amount of Chinese real estate investment in Metro Vancouver at $13 billion in 2015 alone, representing approximately one-third of the national total that year.
“The large-scale financial speculation from China comes at a time when scholars increasingly maintain foreign investment in real estate is not a productive or healthy form of investment for Canadians, many of whom struggle with unaffordable housing costs,” Todd wrote.
The situation is made even more complicated by the fact that it is not only wealthy Chinese who are coming in drove, but also massive corporate entities like China Investment Corp., which has made a $1.7 billion investment in Vancouver mining company Teck Resources.
In turn, Teck Resources has donated over $2 million to the B.C. Liberal Party, a development which has led to Dermod Travis of Integrity B.C. suggesting that the government of China is, for all intents and purposes, donating to a Canadian political party.
“So much for national sovereignty. So much for protecting Canadian politicians from outside money,” Todd lamented. “This, even while China’s human rights abuses are too numerous to mention… It’s naive to think China’s interest in Canada is completely harmless.”
“We should not deny the myriad ways the corporate arms of any superpower, like the U.S., can externally influence a medium power like Canada,” the columnist warned. “Economic occupation has long been a domination strategy, exemplified in the 20th century by the U.S.’s incursion into Latin America.”
The entirety of Todd’s thought-provoking piece can be viewed here.
Related stories:
Chinese investors not giving up on Canadian property any time soon—report
Chinese investment not the critical factor in Canadian real estate’s health—analysts
In a recent piece, Todd cited various studies that put the amount of Chinese real estate investment in Metro Vancouver at $13 billion in 2015 alone, representing approximately one-third of the national total that year.
“The large-scale financial speculation from China comes at a time when scholars increasingly maintain foreign investment in real estate is not a productive or healthy form of investment for Canadians, many of whom struggle with unaffordable housing costs,” Todd wrote.
The situation is made even more complicated by the fact that it is not only wealthy Chinese who are coming in drove, but also massive corporate entities like China Investment Corp., which has made a $1.7 billion investment in Vancouver mining company Teck Resources.
In turn, Teck Resources has donated over $2 million to the B.C. Liberal Party, a development which has led to Dermod Travis of Integrity B.C. suggesting that the government of China is, for all intents and purposes, donating to a Canadian political party.
“So much for national sovereignty. So much for protecting Canadian politicians from outside money,” Todd lamented. “This, even while China’s human rights abuses are too numerous to mention… It’s naive to think China’s interest in Canada is completely harmless.”
“We should not deny the myriad ways the corporate arms of any superpower, like the U.S., can externally influence a medium power like Canada,” the columnist warned. “Economic occupation has long been a domination strategy, exemplified in the 20th century by the U.S.’s incursion into Latin America.”
The entirety of Todd’s thought-provoking piece can be viewed here.
Related stories:
Chinese investors not giving up on Canadian property any time soon—report
Chinese investment not the critical factor in Canadian real estate’s health—analysts
