Economy - overview As an affluent, high-tech industrial society, Canada today closely resemblesthe US in per capita output, market-oriented economic system, and patternof production. Since World War II, the impressive growth of the manufacturing,mining, and service sectors has transformed the nation from a largely ruraleconomy into one primarily industrial and urban. Canada started the 1990sin recession, and real rates of growth have averaged only 1.1% so far thisdecade. Because of slower growth, Canada still faces high unemployment - especiallyin Quebec and the Maritime Provinces - and a large public sector debt. Withits great natural resources, skilled labor force, and modern capital plant,however, Canada will enjoy better economic prospects in the future. The continuingconstitutional impasse between English- and French-speaking areas is raisingthe possibility of a split in the confederation, making foreign investorssomewhat edgy.

GDP purchasing power parity - $721 billion (1996 est.)

GDP - real growth rate 1.4% (1996 est.)

GDP - per capita purchasing power parity - $25,000 (1996 est.)

GDP - composition by sector
agriculture: 3%
industry: 31%
services : 66% (1996)

Inflation rate - consumer price index 1.4% (1996)

Labor force
total: 15.1 million (1996)
by occupation : services 74%, manufacturing 15%, agriculture 3%, construction 5%, other3% (1994)

Unemployment rate 9.7% (December 1996)

Budget
revenues: $94.3 billion
expenditures: $115.2 billion, including capital expenditures of $1.7 billion (FY95/96est.)

Industries processed and unprocessed minerals, food products, wood and paper products,transportation equipment, chemicals, fish products, petroleum and naturalgas

Industrial production growth rate 1.3% (1996)

Electricity - capacity 113.65 million kW (1994)

Electricity - production 547.9 billion kWh (1995)

Electricity - consumption per capita 16,137 kWh (1995 est.)

Agriculture - products wheat, barley, oilseed, tobacco, fruits, vegetables; dairy products;forest products; commercial fisheries provide annual catch of 1.5 millionmetric tons, of which 75% is exported

Exports
total value: $195.4 billion (f.o.b., 1996 est.)
commodities : newsprint, wood pulp, timber, crude petroleum, machinery, natural gas,aluminum, motor vehicles and parts; telecommunications equipment
partners: US, Japan, UK, Germany, South Korea, Netherlands, China

Imports
total value: $169.5 billion (c.i.f., 1996 est.)
commodities : crude oil, chemicals, motor vehicles and parts, durable consumer goods,electronic computers; telecommunications equipment and parts
partners: US, Japan, UK, Germany, France, Mexico, Taiwan, South Korea

Debt - external $253 billion (1996)

Economic aid
donor: ODA, $1.6 billion (1995)
note : ODA and OOF commitments, $10.1 billion (1986-91)

Currency 1 Canadian dollar (Can$) = 100 cents

Exchange rates Canadian dollars (Can$) per US$1 - 1.3486 (January 1997), 1.3635 (1996),1.37241 (1995), 1.3656 (1994), 1.2901 (1993), 1.2087 (1992)

Fiscal year 1 April - 31 March

NOTE: The information regarding Canada on this page is re-published from the 1997 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Canada Economy 1997 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Canada Economy 1997 should be addressed to the CIA.