An Overview of Canada’s Economy

Canada, the second-largest country in the world, has a wealth of natural resources and is one of the best economies in the world. The ever-growing manufacturing, mining and service sectors have transformed the Canadian nation from a rural economy to an industrial and urban economy.

About 70% of Canadians are involved in the service industry, making it the leading industrial sector in the Canadian economy. The primary sector is dominated by the oil and timber industries, as Canada has the second-largest oil resource in the world after Saudi Arabia and the vast majority of forests. The subsectors of the forestry industry are the manufacture of hardwood products, the manufacture of pulp and paper products, and forestry and logging.

Canada is not an accident in the G8. Let’s look at some other points of its economy.

MOK.

Canada has been a member of the World Trade Organization (WTO) since January 1, 1995, because international trade is one of the major parts of the Canadian economy. Canada’s economic growth depends on access to world markets for a variety of goods and services. The United States, China, the European Union, and many other countries are Canada’s trading partners, but most products are exported to the United States, making it Canada’s main trading partner.

Canadian GDP and NAFTA.

Both GDP (Gross Domestic Product) and GDP per capita have been growing since the governments of Canada, Mexico and the United States signed the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) to create a North American trade bloc. The agreement was signed by the leaders of the said countries and entered into force on 1 January 1994.

Banking System.

During the global financial crisis at the end of the last decade, Canadian banks were relatively stable. While U.S. banks collapsed, Canada had no banking failures. Because of this its banking system has been rated as the most robust in the world. There are six largest Canadian banks on the list of the best banks in the world: Royal Bank of Canada, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (CIBC), TD Bank Financial Group, Bank of Nova Scotia, Montreal Bank, and National Bank of Canada.

The public debt.

Canada’s public debt is steadily growing. At the beginning of the last decade, it was nearly $ 500 billion and at the end of 2012, it was over $ 600 billion, or about $ 17,000 per citizen. By comparison, every U.S. citizen owes more than $ 52,000. Compared to Canada’s U.S. government debt, it’s much less, but it’s always growing anyway.

Investors.

Investors play a very important role in the economic growth of any country. Therefore, Canada has an Agreement on the Protection and Protection of Foreign Investments (FIPA) with more than twenty countries: the Russian Federation, Poland, Egypt, Thailand, Venezuela, and so on. This agreement obliges both countries to respect foreign investors and foreign investment. Additionally, on September 9, 2012, the leaders of Canada and China signed FIPA.

Canadian health care.

This area has some problems. First, the lack of doctors and nurses. Patients can wait more than a month to see a doctor. This could cost someone’s life. The second problem is the cost of medical care. Of course, all major cases are covered by health insurance, and the health of Canadians is generally protected, but people can pay that health insurance organization more than 40% of their budget each month.

Unemployment insurance.

This is important to note because during the global crisis that began in late 2007 many people lost their jobs around the world. 240,000 Canadian workers lost their jobs in the first two months of 2009 alone.