Carney to showcase Canada’s capital agenda at first-ever investment summit

Prime Minister Mark Carney will convene high-profile investors in Toronto next week for what will be Canada's inaugural national investment summit. The aim is to address the country's persistent investment shortfall, which experts say has hindered productivity and economic growth. Hundreds of global and domestic investors with trillions of dollars in assets under management are expected to attend the summit in downtown Toronto on September 14 and 15.

Premier Danielle Smith of Alberta, Premier Scott Moe of Saskatchewan, and Premier Susan Holt of New Brunswick are among the Canadian business leaders who will present major projects to investors.

The investment summit is being jointly organized by Carney's Prime Minister's Office, the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, and Public Sector Pension Investments, two of the nation's largest asset managers. Carney has been pushing for a capital-focused agenda since taking office 18 months ago, reorienting federal policy and budgetary frameworks to prioritize critical infrastructure and major projects. He has set an ambitious target of catalyzing $1 trillion in investments across Canada over a five-year period.

According to Mahmood Nanji, a fellow at the Ivey School of Business at Western University, Canada has long struggled with a lack of business investment, which has contributed to weak productivity and sluggish growth. This investment deficit has been attributed to regulatory burdens and lengthy, uncertain project approval processes.

A recent report by the CPP Investment Board's Insights arm surveyed 65 of the world's largest asset managers, finding that while the energy sector remains the most attractive investment opportunity globally for Canada, it is accompanied by significant risks such as policy reversals and regulatory fragmentation.

The Conservative party has criticized what it terms "anti-development laws" and levies like the industrial carbon price as factors holding back the resource extraction and manufacturing sectors. However, the CPP survey also highlighted Canada's strengths in attracting global capital, ranking favorably in terms of openness to capital and execution in the energy transition.

Experts, such as Jeremy Kronick of the C.D. Howe Institute, attribute Carney's efforts to "open for business" initiatives, such as the major projects office and One Canadian Economy Act, to efforts to streamline approvals for large-scale nation-building projects.

Despite these efforts, regulatory processes continue to pose challenges, according to Kronick. However, shifting political sentiment may make it easier to garner public support for major projects. A recent Angus Reid poll found broad support for a new pipeline connecting Alberta to British Columbia. Nevertheless, major projects often face litigation, and officials will need to ensure that Indigenous stakeholders are adequately consulted before making significant commitments to investors.

Despite these challenges, foreign direct investment in Canada reached $96.8 billion in 2025, the highest level since 2007, indicating renewed interest from external capital sources.