TORONTO, Canada, 25th July, 2026 — Dr. Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi, UAE Minister of Foreign Trade, spearheaded a significant government and business delegation visit to Toronto, Canada, aiming to strengthen the bilateral economic ties between the UAE and Canada. The visit underscored the collaborative spirit and shared ambitions of both nations in building strong economic partnerships.
A pivotal event during the visit was a business roundtable co-chaired by Al Zeyoudi and the Honourable Maninder Sidhu, Canada’s Minister of International Trade. The gathering was attended by senior business leaders and government officials from both countries, including the Honorable Jean Charest, co-chair of the Canada-UAE Business Council and former Premier of Quebec. The roundtable aimed at identifying opportunities for enhanced private-sector collaboration, fostering long-term commercially meaningful connections.
Dr. Al Zeyoudi emphasized Canada’s importance as a trade and investment partner, stating, “With its world-class capabilities in agri-food, clean technology, advanced manufacturing, as well as a financial services sector that complements our own economic ambitions, Canada is a nation of increasing focus for our private sector.” He noted the genuine opportunity for mutual growth and highlighted the existing bilateral non-oil trade, which amounted to more than US$4.2 billion in 2025.
During his visit, Al Zeyoudi engaged in a bilateral meeting with Hon. Maninder Sidhu and held discussions with representatives from the Royal Bank of Canada (RBC), including Neil McLaughlin, Lindsay Patrick, Wayne Bossert, John Stackhouse, and Thomas Ashcroft. The talks revolved around financial services collaboration and strengthening economic ties.
Highlighting the UAE’s focus on innovation, Al Zeyoudi visited the Vector Institute, one of Canada’s premier AI research non-profits. Here, he met with Cameron Schuler, Alan Veerman, and Roxana Sultan to discuss ways to translate AI breakthroughs into practical applications through talent development and industry partnerships.
The business roundtable featured senior representatives from leading Canadian and UAE companies across various sectors such as agri-food, clean energy, financial services, logistics, and technology. These discussions sought to explore potential for expanded bilateral investment, enhance supply-chain partnerships, and leverage the UAE’s position as a global trade hub to facilitate broader market access for Canadian enterprises across the Gulf, Middle East, Africa, and Asia.
Reflecting the robust trajectory of UAE-Canada economic relations, the bilateral non-oil foreign trade reached US$4.2 billion in 2025, marking a 21.0% year-on-year increase from 2024, and an impressive 94.9% increase since 2019. The surge in UAE non-oil exports to Canada, primarily in jewelry, precious metal products, and steel structures, demonstrates the growing demand for UAE-sourced goods.
The visit aligns with the UAE’s active international trade engagement agenda, which aims to boost its non-oil foreign trade to US$1.1 trillion by 2031. Through initiatives like trade promotion activities, ministerial engagements, and business delegation programs, the UAE continues to pursue economic diversification and build strong commercial partnerships with like-minded nations globally.
Team V.DIR-EM-UAE
