Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney begins a four-country tour on Tuesday aimed at cutting Canada's dependence on the United States, as new polling published today shows Canadians warming to China and India after two years of American tariffs.

The tour, which runs from 11 to 19 November, will take Carney to Ireland, the Philippines, Cambodia and China. It comes as a survey by the Angus Reid Institute, carried out with the Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada, finds that favourable views of China among Canadians have more than doubled since November 2024, from 15 per cent to 38 per cent.

Favourable views of China more than double

The survey of 1,609 Canadian adults, conducted between 29 October and 4 November, found that 69 per cent of Canadians say developing a stronger relationship with China is important as Canada looks to reduce its dependence on the United States. For India, the figure was 61 per cent, while 87 per cent said the same of Japan and 76 per cent of South Korea.

Views of India have also improved, with 36 per cent of Canadians now holding a favourable view, up from 26 per cent in 2024. More Canadians now view China and India positively than view the United States positively, with US favourability at 25 per cent.

The shift extends to priorities. In 2021, Canadians said by a three-to-one margin that human rights and the rule of law should be Canada's focus when dealing with China, rather than trade. Now a majority of 57 per cent say trade and investment opportunities should take priority. On India, 56 per cent now put trade first, compared with 38 per cent in 2024.

Support for more trade with Asia is also rising. Nearly three in five Canadians, 58 per cent, say they have become more supportive of trade with Japan, South Korea and Taiwan in response to US-Canada trade tensions, and 41 per cent say the same of trade with China.

A tour built around trade deals

Carney's trip begins in Dublin, where he will attend the Summit of the European Political Community as Canada works towards becoming the European Union's first associate member. He will then travel to Manila for the ASEAN Summit as guest of the chair, where Ottawa hopes to finalise an ASEAN-Canada free trade agreement it says could unlock more than $3.5 billion in exports.

After attending the Sommet de la Francophonie in Phnom Penh, Carney will finish in Shenzhen, China, for the APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting. It will be his second visit to China this year, following a trip in January that was the first by a Canadian prime minister in more than eight years. Ottawa says a strategic partnership agreed with Beijing over the past year is unlocking more than $7 billion in export markets for Canadian businesses.

Carney has pledged to double Canada's trade with countries other than the United States over the next decade, and the government presents this week's tour as a practical step in that campaign.

Caution about Beijing remains

The warming is far from unqualified. More than half of Canadians, 53 per cent, still say they view China unfavourably, and 49 per cent believe China's rise is a threat to Canadian interests, although that is down from 61 per cent a year ago.

When asked where Canada should build closer trade ties, the European Union remains the clear first choice at 58 per cent, ahead of Mexico at 24 per cent, the United Kingdom at 22 per cent and the United States at 20 per cent. China stands at 14 per cent and India at 5 per cent.

The Angus Reid Institute survey was conducted online among members of the Angus Reid Forum and carries a margin of error of plus or minus two percentage points, 19 times out of 20.