China has reached an agreement with Canadian officials to designate Canada as an approved investment destination for domestic insurance companies under the Qualified Domestic Institutional Investor (QDII) program, the National Post reported. China’s insurers will be permitted to invest in Canadian capital markets under the deal, announced by Finance Minister Jim Flaherty at the G20 summit in Seoul. The announcement comes shortly after Ottawa blocked a takeover of Potash Corp of Saskatchewan (POT.NYSE) by global mining giant BHP Billiton (BHP.NYSE, BLT.LSE, BHP.ASX). That move had raised questions about Canada’s openness to foreign investment. The QDII program, established in 2006, is intended in part to address China’s massive foreign exchange surplus; Beijing has quickened the pace of approvals of overseas investment funds in recent months.
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