Chapter 9
Canada's Economy
A trading nation: the main types of industry, Canada's biggest trading partner, and its place among the world's leading economies.
A trading nation
- Canada has always been a trading nation, and trade is the engine of its economic growth.
- Free trade with the United States began in 1988. In 1994 Mexico joined in the broader North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), a market of over 444 million people.
- Canada has one of the ten largest economies in the world.
- The study guide lists Canada as a member of the G8 group of leading economies, with the United States, Germany, the United Kingdom, Italy, France, Japan and Russia.
Three main types of industry
- Service industries: transportation, education, health care, construction, banking, communications, retail, tourism and government. More than 75% of working Canadians have service jobs.
- Manufacturing industries: paper, high-technology equipment, aerospace, cars, machinery, food, clothing and more.
- Natural resource industries: forestry, fishing, agriculture, mining and energy. They shaped Canada's history and are a big part of its exports; many regional economies depend on them.
Canada and the United States
- Canada and the United States are each other's largest trading partner. It is the biggest two-way trading relationship in the world.
- Over three-quarters of Canada's exports go to the United States, including energy, industrial goods, machinery, cars, and farm, fish, forest and consumer products.
- Millions of people cross the border every year. Canada and the U.S. share the world's longest undefended border.
- The Peace Arch at Blaine, Washington, is a symbol of the close ties between the two countries.
Checked against the official study guide: Discover Canada: Canada's economy. Summarized in our own words.