The Canadian Economy at a Glance

Updated April 23, 2023

Which industries contribute the most to Canada’s economy? In terms of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) what are the percentages from oil and gas, real estate, construction, government services, forestry, farming, financial services and manufacturing etc.? The answers below might surprise or even shock you.

What portion of Canadian GDP do imports and exports make up? What products does Canada Import and Export? Which countries, other than the United States, are important trading partners of Canada? What products is Canada a net exporter of and what is it a net importer of? The sometimes surprising answers are provided below in a brief and graphical format.

Firstly, what is the meaning of GDP?

GDP or Gross Domestic Product refers to the total dollar value of recorded economic production within a country. It measures the final value of all goods and services produced. The GDP of a particular industry is (roughly) the value of its sales minus the costs of goods or services purchased from other entities. The GDP of a particular industry measures the economic activity directly generated by that industry. The GDP of a particular industry is not a measure of its profit or value added since it does not deduct the cost of labour from the value of sales.

GDP is often criticized because it does not include the value of unpaid work or of unreported economic activities such as the “underground economy” or the value of “do-it-yourself” labour. Nevertheless, GDP is the best available figure for use in understanding the economy and the relative importance of each industry to the economy.

What is Canada’s GDP by industry or sector?

As of the end of 2022, Canada’s reported GDP per year, in 2022 dollars, was running at $2.789 trillion or $2,789 billion per year.

The following chart shows the percentage contribution of the various goods and services sectors to the total. Note however that this is based on something Statistics Canada calls 2012 chained dollars, which, I understand, basically assumes that there were no relative price changes among the sectors since 2012. I would prefer to use current dollars. However, for complicated reasons, Statistics Canada produces figures on GDP by industry in current dollars only on a three year lag basis. It’s certainly possible that the oil and gas component here would rank higher in current dollars.

Data Source: Statistics Canada
https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/t1/tbl1/en/tv.action?pid=3610043403

From reading the financial news you may have been under the strong impression that Canada’s GDP is dominated by commodities including particularly oil, gas, and various minerals. You may have also heard that manufacturing is no longer such an important component of Canada’s economy.

The actual figures show that “Real estate and rental and leasing” is the largest segment of Canada’s economy at 13.0%. This category includes real estate brokers. The biggest component here is the renting / leasing of real estate but it also includes auto and equipment leasing. Most retailers and office users rent their space. Note that this category does not include constructing real estate! The high percentage related to the use of real estate (plus auto and equipment leasing) may seem high. But then again perhaps the most defining characteristic of any developed economy is the presence of buildings and improved land of all sorts.

Manufacturing, while it may be lower than in years past, is still a very large portion of GDP and is the second largest component at 9.5%. Note that manufacturing includes process industries such as oil refineries, pulp mills and chemical plants.

Surprisingly, mining, quarrying, and oil and gas extraction is only the third largest item at 7.6% of GDP. As of 2022 it was likely far higher than that in current dollars as opposed to 2012 chained dollars.

Review the rest of the chart to see the composition of the Canadian economy and the percent contribution of different segments.

In total, goods-producing industries accounted for 29% of Canada’s GDP while service-producing industries accounted for 71% of GDP. The public sector (which would be mostly or almost entirely service-producing) constituted 19.5% of GDP.

See the link to the source data just above to see the raw data if desired.

Who Consumes Canada’s GDP?
Canada’s 2020 GDP was consumed in the following fashion:

Personal Household consumption:                       58%
Government consumption:                                 21%
Business Investment (buildings and equipment): 18% (includes residential structures)
Government Investment:                                    4%
Net Exports:                                                      -1%

Total:                                                            100%

When you hear that consumers “account” for most of Canada’s GDP, that does not mean that businesses account for little. In fact Businesses and (yes) government create the GDP and consumers consume the largest share. Government also consumes a large share but this is done to serve people (those same consumers) for example direct service in the case of education and health care and other direct services and indirect service in the case of police, the court, the army and other government services. This should not be considered surprising or alarming. Why else should things be produced except for consumption? (and for some investment to fuel future consumption).

A surprisingly large 22% of Canada’s GDP is expended on investment in (the creation of) longer lasting assets such as buildings (including houses) and equipment rather than being consumed for immediate gratification. This includes replacing and upgrading worn out buildings and assets which may account for it being so high.

What does Canada Export?

As a country, Canada imports goods and services that amount to close to 30% of GDP. That would not be sustainable unless exports were at a roughly similar level, which, luckily, they are. In a sense it can be said that every country that imports things needs to export something to pay for those imports – unless the country collectively is to run down its savings or run up its debts to pay for imports.

Aa of Q4 2022, Canada’s exports of goods and services were running at 34% as large as GDP and amounted to $924 billion dollars per year. Note the figures here are in actual current dollars. Statistics Canada also provides this in something it calls 2012 chained dollars. Basically, as I understand it, those chained dollars assume that inflation was equal across all sectors. Current dollars is by far the more relevant measure.

Here is a breakdown of Canada’s exports by category:

Data Source: Statistics Canada
https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/t1/tbl1/en/tv.action?pid=1210013401

Canada’s largest category of exports by far is energy products – crude oil is the great majority of this followed by natural gas then refined petroleum products and coal and a minor amount of electricity and nuclear fuel. Commercial services which includes management services, financial services and information services is the second largest. Motor vehicles has slipped to fifth place. Canada has a reputation for exporting relatively unprocessed natural resources. And despite the export of commercial services and vehicles and other finished items, that reputation remains accurate with substantial exports of crude oil and natural gas and raw metals, minerals and timber, and agricultural products.

To Which Countries Does Canada Export to (Excludes Services)?

The answer to that question might be considered alarming:

Data Source, Statistics Canada
http://www.statcan.gc.ca/tables-tableaux/sum-som/l01/cst01/gblec02a-eng.htm

The above link and graph is from February 2023 data seasonally adjusted by Statistics Canada.

Note that our data source does not include services in the exports-by-country data.

The United States accounted for the great majority of Canadian goods (merchandise) exports at a staggering 80% based on February 2023 seasonally adjusted. China is the second biggest goods destination for Canada at just 5.1%. The European Union collectively is the third largest export destination but accounted for only 4.5% and China was third at only 4.1%.

Things may be changing and China is an important  “customer” country for Canada. But the fact is, for now, when it comes to Canadian exports, the United States remains our number one export destination by far. Mexico, despite its proximity accounts for only 1.4%. The chart illustrates that fact that Canada’s exports to all but a tiny handful of countries are almost insignificant. Treating the European Union collectively, you can literally count all of Canada’s important trading destination countries on the fingers of one hand. The extent of the reliance on exports to the U.S. is sobering and, given their increasing “America-First” rhetoric and policies, alarming.

What Does Canada Import?

Canadian Imports by Category:

As at Q4 2022, Canada’s seasonally adjusted and annualized imports of goods and services were 33% as large as its GDP and amounted to $927 billion. The following chart shows imports by industry segment as a percentage of total goods and services imports.

Data Source: Statistics Canada
https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/t1/tbl1/en/tv.action?pid=1210013401

The data indicates that consumer goods are the largest import category at 16.7% of the total. Motor vehicles and parts constitute 13.2% of total goods and services imports. Commercial services constitute 11.9%.

http://www5.statcan.gc.ca/cansim/pick-choisir?lang=eng&p2=33&id=3760108

From Which Countries Does Canada Import Goods?

 

Data Source, Statistics Canada

Note that our data source does not include services in the imports-by-country data.

The United States accounts for 62% of Canada’s goods imports. China accounts for just 11%. The European Union collectively accounts for 8.3%. Mexico accounts for for 1.3% and the U.K for 3.4%. The remaining 14% is spread widely around the globe. Most of the other countries in the world are insignificant to Canada in terms of imports.

For Which Products and Services is Canada a Net Exporter and For Which a Net Importer?

Energy – largely crude oil – is Canada’s largest NET export. And it’s “no contest”. Oil is “bringing home the bacon” to this country and in a sense provides the dollars to pay for the things that Canada imports.

Canada is a net exporter of commodities including notably energy products, metal & mineral products, farm, fishing & intermediate food products, and forestry products.

Canada is a net importer in most manufactured and finished goods categories including consumer goods, motor vehicles & parts, industrial machinery, and electronic & electrical equipment.

Canadians don’t actually operate as one giant sort of “team”. But it can be argued or observed from this data that, for the country as a whole, the net exports of energy (oil) in particular and to a much lesser extent other commodity products are what pay the bills to allow the country to be very much a net importer of consumer and manufactured goods.

The net contribution or surplus on energy products (mostly oil) is staggeringly large as indicated in the chart just above.

END
Shawn Allen, CFA, CPA, MBA, P.Eng.
President, InvestorsFriend Inc.
Originally created November 3, 2007, the latest annual update was April 23, 2023.