C-Suite Quarterly Survey: Canadian CEOs Weigh in on Foreign and Domestic Energy Sector Investment, All Day Today on BNN

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TORONTO, Oct. 1, 2012 /CNW/ - Today, Business News Network (BNN) gives a look inside corner offices, revealing the findings of the 28^th C-Suite Quarterly survey sponsored by KPMG and conducted by Gandalf Group. Respondents to this edition of the survey focused on CNOOC Limited, China's largest offshore crude oil and natural gas producer, and its proposed purchase of Nexen Inc. for US$15.1 billion; the application of a net benefit test to foreign investment by the Canadian government; if Canada needs a national energy strategy and if the lack of one is hurting investment in Canada; and predictions on the economic forecasts for the next quarter.

BNN's in-depth look at the C-Suite Quarterly survey findings includes feature interviews throughout the day on THE STREET at 8:20 a.m. ET; BUSINESS DAY AM at 11:15 a.m. ET; THE BUSINESS NEWS at 12:10 p.m. ET; BUSINESS DAY PM at 2:20 p.m. ET; and THE CLOSE just after 4:30 p.m. ET. BNN's complete analysis of the findings is available online at BNN.ca post-broadcast.

"Canadian execs are particularly focused on this country's energy resource sector," said Jack Fleischmann, General Manager, BNN. "Half of executives oppose the purchase of Nexen by China's CNOOC. And a strong majority support a net benefit test on foreign takeovers. That's a significant finding for Ottawa to consider as it writes policy in this area."

Key Findings of the 28^th C-SUITE Findings Include:

• 50% of executives oppose the purchase of Canadian energy company Nexen Inc. by China's CNOOC as it stands and believe the government should not allow it to proceed without conditions. Only 42% said the government should allow it to proceed with conditions.
• Executives express they'd be more supportive if the bid was from a U.S. company and much more supportive if it was from a Canadian company.
• Most executives, seven in 10, support in principal the Canadian government being allowed to apply a net benefit test on major foreign acquisitions.
• 44% of executives agreed Canada's current system of foreign investment review is hurting investment in Canada.
• Mining and oil are among the sectors that executives believe will be most valuable to Canada over the long term.
• 45% of executives agreed that the lack of a national energy strategy is hurting investment in Canada
• There is strong support from the C-Suite that proposed pipeline initiatives to connect Alberta oil to markets in eastern Canada are worth pursing
• Two-thirds of executives surveyed support construction of refineries in Canada as a condition for building new pipelines for export.
• The economic outlook for the next quarter is effectively unchanged with a very small number of executives expecting the Canadian economy to decline, while the vast majority expects only moderate growth.

The C-Suite Quarterly survey is conducted by Gandalf Group and sponsored by KPMG.

About BNN
BNN - Business News Network is Canada's only television service devoted exclusively to business and finance news with wall-to-wall coverage of the markets. The network features the only televised stock ticker with real-time data from the TSX, NYSE and NASDAQ. BNN provides Canadian investors with the latest business news, newsmaker interviews and stock market analyses. BNN is a division of Bell Media, which is owned by BCE Inc. (TSX, NYSE: BCE), Canada's largest communications company.  For more information about BNN, visit www.bnn.ca.

About Gandalf Group
The Gandalf Group is an opinion research and communications consulting firm. The firm's principals are nationally recognized leaders in research and communications strategy, providing advice to business, industry associations, public sector agencies and media outlets. The Gandalf Group has been conducting quarterly editions of the C-Suite survey on behalf of KPMG, The Globe and Mail's Report on Business and BNN since 2006. Past editions of reports on survey findings are available at GandalfGroup.ca.

About KPMG
KPMG LLP, the audit, tax and advisory firm (kpmg.ca), a Canadian limited liability partnership established under the laws of Ontario, is the Canadian member firm of KPMG International Cooperative ("KPMG International"). KPMG International's member firms have 140,000 professionals, including more than 7,900 partners, in 146 countries.

The independent member firms of the KPMG network are affiliated with KPMG International, a Swiss entity. Each KPMG firm is a legally distinct and separate entity, and describes itself as such.

SOURCE: BNN - Business News Network

Shannon Gallagher, 416.384.4623 or [email protected]
Renee Dupuis, 416.384.3154 or [email protected]