Mr. Speaker, I would like to congratulate the hon. Minister of Finance, under the leadership of our Prime Minister, on his agreement with the People's Republic of China on a set of measures to support the increased use of the renminbi, which is the Chinese dollar, in trade, commerce, and investment between our two countries. China is Canada's second-largest trading partner, and trade between our two countries totals $73 billion.
With North America's first offshore RMB centre established in Canada, this agreement will facilitate the stable and healthy development of the RMB market in Canada, which facilitates direct trade between Canada and China without having to first convert to the U.S. dollar, saving 6% on every single transaction.
As part of this agreement, Chinese regulators will grant an initial 50 billion yuan quota of investment to Canadian financial institutions under the RMB qualified foreign institutional investor program. As Canada is the first country in the Americas to have an RMB clearing bank designated in its jurisdiction, I am proud to be a member of this government as it does its part in accelerating the flow of trade and investment between Canada and China.