Making a bad situation worse
Despite its challenges over the last decade the auto industry is still a crucial contributor to the national GDP, exports, productivity, an important source of well-paying work and Canada’s second largest export, after petroleum. This study is the second in a series on Canada’s Auto Industry by Unifor Economist Jim Stanford.
This study analyzes CETA’s likely effects on Canadian automotive trade, investment, and employment and claims the trade deal will make Canada’s current trade imbalance with the EU incrementally worse. It estimates that the existing $5.3 billion trade deficit with Europe will widen significantly as a result of the CETA, exceeding $7 billion within a decade. It argues that the growing bilateral deficit and resulting decline in net demand for Canadian-made automotive products arising from this widening bilateral deficit will negatively affect Canadian production, investment, and employment opportunities.
