- Armed
conflicts
- Defence expenditures as a percentage of GDP (supplemental
indicator)
In 2005, there were 32 armed conflicts in
27 countries—down from 36 armed conflicts in 28 countries in 2003.
These figures represent a general decline in armed conflicts since 1996, when
the number worldwide was at 40. The threshold of 1,000 direct deaths separates
armed conflict from lower levels of violence. (Project Ploughshares, The
Ploughshares Monitor, Summer 2006, volume 27, no.2)
In terms of geographic distribution, in
2005, Africa and Asia suffered 26 of the 32 armed conflicts (13 and 13
respectively) or 81.25 per cent of the world's conflicts, down from 29
conflicts in 1996. The Middle East experienced two conflicts or 6.25 per cent
of the total, down from the 1996 level of seven armed conflicts. Europe and the
Americas had four armed conflicts (two and two, respectively) or 12.5 per cent
of the total, the same number as in 1996. (Project Ploughshares, The
Ploughshares Monitor, Summer 2006, volume 27, no.2)
Analysts suggest that the general downward
trend in armed conflicts since 1987 supports the value of increased
multilateral efforts at peacemaking, peacekeeping, and peacebuilding to prevent
the re-emergence of violent conflict. Despite the persistence of political,
communal, and criminal violence across the globe, there is evidence that
international efforts to reduce, end, and prevent armed conflicts are bearing
fruit. (Project Ploughshares, Armed Conflicts Report
2005)
Defence expenditures as a percentage of GDP (supplemental
indicator)
Canada increased its spending on national
defence by about $700 million to $13.9 billion in 2004–05 over
2003–04. As a percentage of GDP, spending on defence remained at 1.2
per cent. Since the early 1980s, Canadian expenditures on defence as a
percentage of GDP have gradually declined. In 1983 and 1984, the ratio was 1.9
per cent, but for the period from 1991 to 1993, the ratio had declined to 1.7
per cent. (National Defence, NATO, and Statistics Canada, 2005)
Defence spending among all NATO members has
increased remarkably since 1980. Since defence spending has not kept pace with
the growth of GDP in these countries, however, defence expenditures as a
percentage of GDP have gradually declined.
Among NATO countries in 2005,
the U.S. ranked first in terms of defence expenditures (over U.S.$472 billion).
When measured as a percentage of GDP, the U.S. is also first with a ratio of
3.8 per cent, ahead of Turkey at 3.2 per cent and Greece at 3.1 per cent.[2]
(NATO, 2005)
- Official Development Assistance (ODA) as a percentage of gross
national income (GNI)
Current
performance and trends
In 1969, the Commission on International
Development recommended that developed countries contribute 0.7 per cent of
their gross national product (GNP) to their official aid budgets. In 1970, the
United Nations General Assembly endorsed this standard. Recent comparative
statistics, such as those compiled by the OECD, use a slightly different
figure, gross national income (GNI does not include goods and services rendered
by non-residents), against which to measure national governments' ODA
expenditures.
In 2005, Canada contributed 0.34 per cent
(or about U.S.$ 3.7 billion) of its GNI to ODA and ranked 14th among the OECD's
22 Development Assistance Committee (DAC) member countries.
This represents an improvement over 2004
and 2003, when Canada contributed 0.27 per cent and 0.24 per cent,
respectively, of its GNI to ODA. In 2005, Canada thus increased its net ODA by
43.5 per cent (or more than U.S.$ 1.1 billion) from 2004, due to a combination
of one-time contributions and currency gains. In 2004, Canada had given about
U.S.$ 2.6 billion in ODA. Among G-7 countries in 2005, Canada ranked fourth
behind the United Kingdom, France, and Germany, but ahead of Italy, Japan, and
the U.S. (OECD, 2006)
Two decades ago, Canada's ODA-GNP ratio was
0.49 per cent, peaking at 0.50 per cent in 1986–87. Since then, the
ratio has been on a downward trend at 0.42 per cent in 1994–95 and
0.27 per cent in 2001–02 but, as seen above, the situation is slowly
improving. (Canadian International Development Agency, Statistical Report on
Official Development Assistance 2003-04) Outcome area: A strong
and mutually beneficial North American partnership
In 2005, Canadian merchandise imports from
the U.S. totalled $215.1 billion or 56.5 per cent of all imports. Imports from
the U.S. rose steadily through the 1990s and 2000s ($137.3 billion in 1994),
peaking at $229.7 billion in 2000. Merchandise imports from Mexico in 2005
totalled $14.6 billion or 3.8 per cent of all imports, up $2.6 billion from
2000 and $10.1 billion since 1994. (World Trade Atlas, Statistics Canada, 2006)
In 2005, Canadian merchandise exports to the U.S. totalled $365.7
billion or 83.9 per cent of all exports. Exports to the U.S. also increased
through the 1990s and 2000s ($183.3 billion in 1994), peaking in 2005 at $365.7
billion. Merchandise exports to Mexico in 2005 totalled $3.2 billion, or 0.8
per cent of all exports, up nearly $1.3 billion since 2000, and up $2.2 billion
since 1994. (World Trade Atlas, Statistics Canada, 2006)
- Canada's
investment position
- Trade with non-NAFTA partners (supplemental indicator)
Current performance and trends
Since the 1990 level of $98.4 billion,
Canadian direct investment abroad (CDIA) has more than quadrupled, reaching
$465.1 billion in 2005—a 3.0-per-cent increase from 2004. This
increase is moderate, though, compared to 2004, which marked a 10.3-per-cent
increase from 2003. Nonetheless, this is up from $161.2 billion in 1995 and
$356.5 billion in 2000. (Statistics Canada, 2006)
Similar to Canada's trading pattern, North America—notably
the U.S.—receives the majority of this investment. In 2005, countries
classified as North American for investment purposes (the U.S., Mexico, and the
Caribbean) received $286.7 billion of CDIA,
$213.7 billion—or 46.0 per cent of total CDIA—of which went
to the U.S. These figures more than quadruple the totals since 1990, when
Canadian investment in North American countries was at $66.1
billion—$60.0 billion of which went to the U.S. (Statistics Canada,
2006)
The United Kingdom was the second most
common destination for CDIA at $42.7 billion, although down $1.7 billion from
2004. Countries in the European Union accounted for 23.7 per cent of CDIA in
2005, down 9.0 per cent from 2004. The appreciation of the Canadian dollar
against the euro and the British pound had a negative impact on CDIA in
European countries and is the main reason explaining this decrease. (State of Trade 2006, Foreign Affairs and International
Trade Canada, 2006)
Brazil
was the newcomer among the top 10 destinations, with CDIA in that country
increasing by 14.8 per cent to $8.0 billion, while Japan dropped from the 10
most common destinations for CDIA. In 2005, holdings of Canadian investment
abroad were concentrated in the finance and insurance sector (44 per cent),
followed by energy and metallic minerals (23 per cent). (State of Trade 2006,
Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada, 2006 and Statistics Canada,
2006)
Canada's investment
position: Foreign direct investment
Current
performance and trends
Since 1990, the level of foreign direct
investment (FDI) in Canada has grown by almost 218 per cent, from $130.9
billion to $415.6 billion in 2005.
As is the case with international trade and
Canadian direct investment abroad, FDI in Canada comes primarily from North
America. In 2005, the North American countries invested a total of $270.8
billion in Canada, up $74.0 billion since 2000 and up $185.0 billion since
1990. U.S. investment in Canada has grown by more than 216 per cent since 1990,
going from $84.1 billion to $266.5 billion in 2005.
In
2005, the U.S. was the number one investor in Canada, followed by the United
Kingdom, France, the Netherlands, and Switzerland. Combined, these five
countries held just over 86.4 per cent of FDI in Canada in 2005.
Despite
the fact that FDI has more than tripled in Canada since 1990, the bulk of
foreign investment continues to come from the U.S. and Western Europe. (State
of Trade 2006, Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada, 2006 and
Statistics Canada, 2006)
Additional information: More on CDIA
In addition to the United Kingdom, three
other European countries were in the top 10 for CDIA in 2005: Ireland, France,
and the Netherlands. Other top 10 destinations were the tax-friendly
jurisdictions of Barbados ($34.7 billion), Bermuda ($13.6 billion), and the
Cayman Islands ($11.0 billion). These three small countries witnessed the
highest average growth in CDIA over the period 1995–2005. (State of Trade 2006,
Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada, 2006 and Statistics Canada,
2006)
Additional information on Canada's net
direct investment position
The difference between Canadian direct
investment abroad and FDI in Canada is Canada's net direct investment position.
In 2005, although still positive, this net direct investment position decreased
to $49.5 billion. 2004 marked the highest ever, when the net direct investment
position was $70.4 billion.
More than three quarters of the countries
with CDIA or FDI in Canada have a positive net direct investment
position—except for the U.S., France, the Netherlands, and
Switzerland—whose net direct investment has never been positive.
(Statistics Canada, 2006)
Additional information: Trend for Canadian trade
Import and export major commodity groups
and principal trading areas[3]
|
Year
|
Imports,
total of all merchandise
($ million)
|
Exports,
total of all merchandise
($ million)
|
|
1990
|
140,999.9
|
152,055.5
|
|
1991
|
140,657.9
|
147,669.4
|
|
1992
|
154,429.6
|
163,463.5
|
|
1993
|
177,123.2
|
190,213.1
|
|
1994
|
207,872.5
|
228,167.1
|
|
1995
|
229,936.5
|
265,333.9
|
|
1996
|
237,688.6
|
280,079.3
|
|
1997
|
277,726.5
|
303,378.2
|
|
1998
|
303,398.6
|
327,161.5
|
|
1999
|
327,026.0
|
369,034.9
|
|
2000
|
362,336.7
|
429,372.2
|
|
2001
|
350,071.2
|
420,730.4
|
|
2002
|
356,727.1
|
414,038.5
|
|
2003
|
342,691.9
|
398,953.9
|
|
2004
|
363,638.5
|
429,120.9
|
|
2005
|
388,210.3
|
453,060.1
|
(Statistics Canada, 2006)
Trade with non-NAFTA partners (supplemental indicator)
Current performance and trends
Canada's merchandise exports[4]
to the European Union and China increased between 1999 and 2005. In 2005, 1.6
per cent of Canada's merchandise exports were shipped to China, up from 0.7 per
cent in 1999. Exports to the European Union now make up 5.6 per cent of
Canada's merchandise exports, up from 4.8 per cent in 1999. The percentage of
Canada's merchandise imports arriving from China and the European Union
respectively reached 7.7 per cent and 12.0 per cent in 2005, which in the
latter case was second only to the 56.4 per cent of merchandise imports that
arrived from the U.S. In 1999, China's share of Canada's imports stood at 2.8
per cent, while the European Union's share was 10.1 per cent. (Statistics
Canada, 2006)
 
Crown
corporations that received budgetary appropriations in 2005–06
*Note: The financial assistance to The Federal Bridge Corporation Limited
went directly to its subsidiary, The Jacques Cartier and Champlain Bridges
Incorporated.
[1]. COSEWIC
uses the following status categories for assessments and reassessments of
species at risk: extinct, extirpated, endangered, threatened, of special
concern, and not at risk.
[2]. Figures
for 2005 are estimated.
[3]. All
numbers are calculated using Balance of Payment base concepts and definitions.
[4]. All
numbers are calculated using Custom base concepts and definitions.
|
