WHITE SULPHER SPRINGS, W.Va. — U.S. Senator Shelley Moore Capito welcomed Ambassador of Canada to the United State Kirsten Hillman to the Mountain State for events at the Chamber’s West Virginia Business Summit.
Capito and Hillman discussed the state’s strong relationship with Canada and then brought leaders from around the state together for a roundtable discussion on the potential expanding of opportunities between West Virginia and Canada.
West Virginia and Canada not only have a good relation, but business between the two is apparently booming according to Ambassador Hillman.
“We’re your biggest customer,” Hillman said on Metro News “Talkline” with Hoppy Kercheval. “We buy $2.1 billion worth of goods from West Virginia every single year, which is more than your next six export markets combined.”
The $2.1 billion in goods going to Canada was, in fact, the largest export for West Virginia in 2023, as it represented 38% of the state’s goods exports. In addition, Hillman claimed that 32,000 jobs are supported by Canadian companies that are invested in West Virginia.
Hillman says West Virginia is an example of what Canada and the United States can do.
“I think West Virginia is a really good example of what we can do together and what more we can do together, and I’m just here trying to spread that message,” Hillman said.
Hillman says Canada is also seeing recent success with the country as a whole in addition to West Virginia.
“Last year, Canada and the United States had more trade between our two countries than any time in the history of our two countries,” Hillman said. “We are finding ourselves in a world internationally that is complicated with a lot of disruption, a lot of conflict, and we have the great big fortune of having each other as neighbors.”
Capito says Canada and West Virginia’s relationship has a lot to do with the current standing of the two countries.
“Canada is an important partner to West Virginia,” Capito said. “In fact, the bilateral relationship between our countries, specifically West Virginia, holds vital importance to our countries’ national security, energy security, and economic growth.”
West Virginia currently hosts 37 Canadian-owned companies that employ nearly 1,300 workers in the state.