Interprovincial exports 20 per cent of GDP: Stats Can

OTTAWA, (March 5, 2004) — A hefty Statistics Canada study analyzing interprovincial exports over the last decade, shows that Canada’s economic growth depends more on trade between provinces these days as it has faced weakening foreign markets for goods and services.

Interprovincial exports have fared better than international exports since 2000. This represents a marked shift from the situation between 1992 and 2000, when international sales grew at a rapid rate — an average annual rate of 12.4 per cent — while interprovincial trade expanded at only half that pace.

From 2000 to 2002, interprovincial exports rose at a slower, but still robust, annual rate of 3.2 per cent. At the same time, international exports actually declined at an annual pace of per cent.

In 2002, interprovincial exports overall accounted for about one-fifth of Canada’s total economic output as measured by gross domestic product. This proportion was virtually the same as it was in 1992.

Following is a snapshot of the report. Click here for the full study: http://www.statcan.ca/Daily/English/040305/d040305a.htm.

Atlantic Provinces:

Increased reliance on interprovincial exports except for New Brunswick — the only province in which the growth in international exports from 2000 to 2002 outstripped the growth in interprovincial exports.

Nowhere was the increased reliance on interprovincial exports across Canada more evident than in Newfoundland and Labrador. From 2000 to 2002, interprovincial exports rose at almost three times the average annual growth rate during the 1990s.

Quebec:

Foreign exports fell sharply from 2000 to 2002, while its interprovincial exports maintained virtually the same pace of growth as they did during the 1990s. The decline in international trade was led by a sharp drop in exports of information and communication technology products and related equipment, while gains in interprovincial exports from 2000 to 2002 were due to pharmaceutical products, the production of which surged.

Ontario:

Ontario companies have exported considerably less to foreign markets since 2000, and considerably more to other provinces. International exports remained key to the economy, even though they declined at an annual average rate of 0.8 per cent from 2000 to 2002.

In 2002, international exports accounted for 46 per cent of Ontario’s GDP, the highest proportion among the provinces. This compares with only 19 per cent for interprovincial exports.

Western Canada:

Manitoba was the only province that consistently exports more to other provinces than it does to foreign nations. In 2002, Manitoba exported $11.8 billion to other provinces, compared with exports of $10.4 billion abroad. Manitoba was also the only province outside Atlantic Canada that recorded a gain in international exports since 2000. Interprovincial exports, however, grew marginally faster than foreign exports.

Alberta incurred the sharpest slowdown among the provinces in the growth rates of both interprovincial and international exports from 2000 to 2002. Nevertheless, its interprovincial exports performed better than foreign sales.

From 2000 to 2002, British Columbia’s international exports plunged at an average annual rate of 7.7 per cent, the biggest decline among the provinces. During the 1990s, in contrast, its international exports rose at an average rate of 9.7 per cent. Overall exports accounted for only 42 per cent of the province’s economic output in 2002, the smallest proportion among the provinces.