VICTORIA — Premier David Eby says B.C. will play a “key role” in a new international order charted by Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney in a speech in Davos, Switzerland.
Carney said during Monday’s speech at the World Economic Forum that the world order is undergoing a “rupture, not a transition,” and Canada is responding by fast-tracking a trillion dollars of investment in energy, AI, and critical minerals as it diversifies trade relationships.
Eby says there’s “no question” that Carney’s speech will have consequences for British Columbia’s trading relationship with the United States, but they are minimal compared to the consequences of surrendering sovereignty to the United States under President Donald Trump.
He says he listened to Carney’s speech with “relief and pride.”
The premier is attending the BC Natural Resources Forum in Prince George, B.C., where he has made several mining-related announcements, and discussed his recent trade trip to India.
Eby says India, the world’s most populous nation, will see “significant growth” in the coming years and needs a reliable trading partner that can supply metals and minerals.
This represents a “huge opportunity” for British Columbia, he says, which will “leverage” its access to the Pacific to reach growing Asian markets and become Canada’s economic engine.
Eby says Carney’s speech underlined the urgency of speeding up projects, and this is not the time to create uncertainty by repealing the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act, because it would make B.C. less attractive for investment.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 21, 2026.
Wolfgang Depner, The Canadian Press
