MONTREAL—The free trade deal between Canada and the European Union has boosted container shipping and prompted a hiring spree at the docks, Montreal port officials say. The employers association, which handles training for the port workforce as well as the Montreal Port Authority, attribute much of the container inflow to the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement signed by Canada and the European Union in 2016. Serge Auclair, a vice-president at the Montreal Port Authority, stressed the need to carve out more free trade deals beyond the United States as markets in Asia and Eastern Europe open up. Article Continued BelowThe trend toward packing commodities such as grain or pulp and paper into steel shipping containers also helps explain the container traffic uptick, Auclair said. About $41 billion worth of goods move through the Port of Montreal each year, according to the port authority.

Source: thestar September 11, 2018 18:33 UTC