As one of the most prosperous countries in the world, Canada has excellent trade relations with the United States, South and Central American countries and Europe, which are Canada's bilateral trading partners.
Historically, Canada has relied heavily on trade and commerce to grow its economy, exporting large quantities of raw materials, including animal skins, fish, lumber and grain. But over time, they have shifted from reliance on raw material exports to exporting more manufactured and processed goods that can bring in better income because they are more expensive.
Main export
Car
Canada is one of the world's top four auto exporters after Germany, Japan and the United States. As the ninth largest auto producer in the world, the country has a huge advantage in exporting vehicles to multiple markets. Canada's auto industry has many assembly plants where foreign automakers assemble vehicles, with the biggest customers being Japanese and U.S. brands.
The country also has hundreds of companies and factories that manufacture automotive systems and components, creating a favorable environment for the development of the automotive manufacturing and assembly industry. In fact, it is because of this that automobile assembly and manufacturing are the industrial backbone of the nation's economy. It accounts for 23% of Canada's trade with other countries.
Canada produces all types of vehicles, from trucks and passenger cars to buses and the supporting systems and parts required.
Minerals
Canada exports three minerals: precious metals such as gold, platinum, diamonds and silver; energy minerals such as coal and uranium; base metals such as copper, nickel, zinc, iron and lead; and industrial minerals such as gypsum, limestone, potash and rock salt.
Canada is located on nearly 10 million kilometers of land and has six distinct geological regions. The Canadian continental shelf is the source of the country's oil and natural gas. These metals are mainly found in the central and western regions of the country that make up the Canadian Shield. The area has the potential to discover more deposits. The Appalachian region has deposits of potash, gypsum, asbestos lead, zinc, and salt. More gypsum, limestone and rock salt have been found in the Inuit orogenic belt in the Arctic archipelago. The Canadian mountains produce more precious and base metals, which the country exports, and internal platforms increase reserves of potash, natural gas, oil and coal.
With all these deposits, Canada is a major exporter and overall producer of potash, the largest exporter of uranium, the second largest exporter of asbestos and sulfur, and the third largest exporter of platinum group metals. They are the fourth largest aluminum producer and the fifth largest exporter of gold, silver, copper and lead. 90% of the country's minerals are exported.
Crude
Canada is a major foreign supplier of U.S. crude oil, exporting 48% of U.S. crude oil imports in 2018. The country exports 96 percent of its crude oil to its neighbors, totaling 3.5 million barrels of oil per day.
Canada's Alberta oil sands hold the country's oil reserves, with even more reserves on its Atlantic coast. The country is the world's third-largest crude oil producer and exporter after Venezuela and Saudi Arabia. They invest in the exploration, production and processing of petroleum with domestic and international consumption implications.
Wood
Softwoods account for 20 percent of the country's total exports. Their forest products generate $17 billion worth of revenue, particularly from newsprint, northern bleached softwood kraft pulp and softwood lumber. Canada dominates the market share of these products and is the largest producer and exporter of the three. Although the decline in newspaper sales in North America has led to reduced demand for newsprint, the country still enjoys demand from other emerging markets in Asia and the rest of the world.
The United States, China and Japan are major importers of Canadian lumber for use in the construction industry in these countries.
Main import
Auto and auto parts
Canada, the second-largest auto market in North America, saw its auto industry-related imports increase by 1% in 2018. They import cars worth $74 billion, with passenger cars the most. As the country is upgrading its road transport system, the country also imports trucks, buses and other vehicles for transport.
Canada's main exporter is the United States, which provides more than 65 percent of the country's auto imports. Auto parts and systems cost Canada $20 billion in 2018. Importing from the U.S. is easier for Canada because the two countries have very coordinated road safety regulations for their vehicles.
Computer machinery
In Canada, computers are key components that drive machinery. They import a lot of computer machines as the country is highly automated and computerized in key areas that drive the economy. Machinery is the key to technology, and as a first world country, Canada relies heavily on technology.
These computers are also widely used by Canadians to run businesses. The country's imports of computer mechanical and optical readers increased by 8.7 units in 2018.
