Text Descriptions
Figure 1: Role of respondents
| |
% |
| Owner/operator |
55% |
| Operations (e.g. supervisor, manager) |
13% |
| CEO, CFO, COO |
11% |
| Director (e.g. supervisor, manager) |
7% |
| Vice President |
5% |
| President |
4% |
| Other |
4% |
Return to Figure 1
Figure 2: Familiarity with Company’s International Business Activities
| |
% |
| I am aware of my company's international business activities, but I am not directly involved |
21% |
| I am directly involved in my company's international business strategy |
28% |
| I am responsible for my company's international business strategy |
51% |
Return to Figure 2
Figure 3: Length of Time Exporting
| |
% |
| Less than 2 years |
10% |
| Between 2 and 5 years |
19% |
| Between 6 and 10 years |
20% |
| More than 10 years |
50% |
Return to Figure 3
Figure 4: Company Revenues
| |
% |
| Under $250,000 |
41% |
| $250,000 to less than $1 million |
26% |
| $1 million to less than $10 million |
24% |
| $10 million to less than $50 million |
6% |
| $50 million or more |
3% |
Return to Figure 4
Figure 5: Industry/sector
| |
% |
| Professional, scientific and technical services |
27% |
| Information and cultural industries |
23% |
| Retail trade |
17% |
| Manufacturing |
12% |
| Transportation and warehousing |
8% |
| Agriculture, forestry, fishing |
5% |
| Mining, oil and gas extraction |
4% |
| Accommodation and food services |
3% |
| Energy |
1% |
| Other |
1% |
Return to Figure 5
Figure 6: Headquarter Location
| |
% |
| North |
1% |
| West |
44% |
| Ontario |
35% |
| Quebec |
15% |
| Atlantic |
4% |
Return to Figure 6
Figure 7: Number of employees
| |
% |
| Under 5 |
46% |
| 5-19 |
33% |
| 20-49 |
8% |
| 50-99 |
7% |
| 100-199 |
1% |
| 200-499 |
2% |
| 500 and over |
2% |
Return to Figure 7
Figure 8: Company Trade Activities
| |
% |
| Exporting services to foreign market(s) |
48% |
| Exporting goods to foreign market(s) |
48% |
| Importing goods or services from outside Canada |
43% |
| Engaged in a partnership or joint venture with a foreign company |
19% |
| Seeking R&D or technology partnership opportunities |
18% |
| Seeking international sources of project financing or venture capital |
16% |
| Licensing a product, brand or technology to a foreign organization |
8% |
| Licensing a product, brand or technology from a foreign company |
8% |
Return to Figure 8
Figure 9: Export Markets
| |
% |
| Only to the U.S. |
29% |
| U.S. and other foreign markets |
59% |
| Foreign markets excluding the U.S. |
12% |
Return to Figure 9
Figure 10: Current Export Markets
| |
% |
| North America |
71% |
| Europe |
67% |
| Asia and Pacific |
55% |
| Central and South America |
27% |
| Middle East and Africa |
22% |
| Other |
4% |
Return to Figure 10
Figure 11: Current Export Markets: North America
| |
% |
| United States |
97% |
| Mexico |
24% |
Return to Figure 11
Figure 12: Current Export Markets: Top European Destinations
| |
% |
| United Kingdom |
55% |
| France |
41% |
| Germany |
38% |
| Italy |
23% |
| Belgium |
19% |
| Ireland |
18% |
| Netherlands |
18% |
| Switzerland |
18% |
| Spain |
18% |
| Sweden |
16% |
| Austria |
15% |
| Greece |
14% |
| Portugal |
13% |
| Finland |
13% |
| Denmark |
12% |
| Russia |
11% |
Return to Figure 12
Figure 13: Current Export Markets: Top Asia and Pacific Destinations
| |
% |
| Australia |
49% |
| China |
36% |
| Japan |
32% |
| New Zealand |
26% |
| Hong Kong, SAR |
20% |
| India |
20% |
| Taiwan |
17% |
| Korea, Republic |
13% |
| Singapore |
13% |
| Philippines |
12% |
| Thailand |
11% |
Return to Figure 13
Figure 14: Current Export Markets: Top Central and South American Destinations
| |
% |
| Brazil |
42% |
| Chile |
26% |
| Argentina |
22% |
| Colombia |
22% |
| Trinidad and Tobago |
16% |
| Costa Rica |
16% |
| Jamaica |
16% |
| Panama |
14% |
| Dominican Republic |
13% |
| Barbados |
13% |
| Peru |
12% |
| Cuba |
12% |
| Venezuela |
11% |
Return to Figure 14
Figure 15: Current Export Markets: Top Middle Eastern and African Destinations
| |
% |
| United Arab Emirates |
35% |
| Israel |
35% |
| South Africa |
32% |
| Saudi Arabia |
25% |
| Egypt |
18% |
| Tanzania |
15% |
| Morocco |
14% |
| Qatar |
14% |
| Nigeria |
13% |
| Mali |
12% |
| Kuwait |
10% |
| Jordan |
10% |
| Ethiopia |
10% |
Return to Figure 15
Figure 16: Future Export Markets
| |
% |
| Europe |
43% |
| Asia and Pacific |
42% |
| Central and South America |
25% |
| Middle East and Africa |
22% |
| North America |
16% |
| Other |
3% |
| We're not interested in other markets |
33% |
Return to Figure 16
Figure 17: Future Export Markets: Countries
| |
% |
| Australia |
20% |
| New Zealand |
15% |
| United Kingdom |
14% |
| Brazil |
13% |
| China |
12% |
| Sweden |
12% |
| Germany |
12% |
| France |
11% |
| Japan |
11% |
| Mexico |
11% |
| South Africa |
10% |
| Belgium |
10% |
| Denmark |
10% |
Return to Figure 17
Figure 18: Obstacles to Activities in International Markets
| |
No obstacle at all |
Minor obstacle |
Moderate obstacle |
Major obstacle |
| Value of the Canadian dollar |
31% |
22% |
26% |
21% |
| Uncertainty of regulatory requirements |
33% |
28% |
26% |
13% |
| Lack of market contacts |
35% |
29% |
24% |
11% |
| Foreign tariffs/trade barriers |
36% |
25% |
27% |
11% |
| Lack of info on biz opportunities |
38% |
26% |
24% |
12% |
| Linguistic/cultural obstacles |
43% |
30% |
20% |
7% |
| Lack of access to financing/funding |
47% |
21% |
18% |
14% |
| Canadian export taxes or permits |
48% |
24% |
17% |
12% |
| Labour availability/skills |
50% |
24% |
17% |
9% |
| Discriminatory treatment of Canadian investors |
51% |
21% |
20% |
6% |
| Patent/IP concerns |
52% |
17% |
21% |
10% |
| Corruption |
52% |
19% |
18% |
11% |
Return to Figure 18
Figure 19: Assistance Required to Develop Foreign Markets
| |
No assistance at all |
Very little assistance |
Some assistance |
A great deal |
| Understanding business practices in foreign markets |
33% |
21% |
31% |
14% |
| Market intelligence and information |
33% |
19% |
30% |
18% |
| Information about companies in foreign markets |
34% |
23% |
29% |
14% |
| Referrals to international sales leads |
35% |
17% |
31% |
16% |
| Referrals to legal, HR, translators, other professionals |
39% |
25% |
25% |
12% |
| Referrals to other commercial programs/services |
40% |
19% |
27% |
14% |
| Recommendations on trade fairs/trade missions |
41% |
22% |
27% |
11% |
| Support for IPR protection, govt. procurement, regulatory matters |
42% |
17% |
25% |
16% |
| Practical advice on organizing business trip |
44% |
24% |
23% |
9% |
| Information/advice on financial assistance |
45% |
17% |
22% |
16% |
| Referrals to R&D partnership opportunities |
47% |
18% |
24% |
11% |
Return to Figure 19
Figure 20: Awareness of Free Trade Agreements
| |
Never heard about it |
Heard about it/do not know details |
Heard about it/know some details |
Heard about it/aware of details |
| CUFTA |
64% |
25% |
8% |
7% |
| CIFTA |
57% |
30% |
10% |
3% |
| CCFTA |
54% |
32% |
12% |
3% |
| CKFTA |
52% |
33% |
11% |
3% |
| CPTPP |
28% |
37% |
28% |
7% |
| CETA |
27% |
41% |
26% |
7% |
Return to Figure 20
Figure 21: Use of Free Trade Agreements
| |
Currently use |
Plan to use |
Don’t know/not sure |
| CETA (n= 397) |
9% |
17% |
73% |
| CKFTA (n= 272) |
7% |
14% |
79% |
| CUFTA (n= 226) |
5% |
16% |
79% |
| CCFTA (n= 261) |
5% |
14% |
81% |
| CIFTA (n= 252) |
5% |
16% |
80% |
Return to Figure 21
Figure 22: Likelihood of Trading with CPTPP Countries
| |
% |
| Very likely |
9% |
| Somewhat likely |
21% |
| Not very likely |
21% |
| Not at all likely |
23% |
| Already trade with CPTPP countries |
7% |
| Don't know/not sure |
21% |
Return to Figure 22
Figure 23: Outlook for Import Volumes from the Asia-Pacific Region
| |
% |
| Increase significantly |
5% |
| Increase somewhat |
27% |
| Stay about the same |
30% |
| Decrease somewhat |
6% |
| We do not import from the Asia-Pacific region |
21% |
| Don't know/not sure |
8% |
Return to Figure 23
Figure 24: Use of other free trade agreements
| |
Currently use |
Plan to use |
Do not plan to use |
Don’t know/not sure |
| North American Free Trade Agreement |
33% |
22% |
20% |
25% |
| Canada-European Free Trade Association Free Trade Agreement |
7% |
20% |
39% |
34% |
| Canada-Panama Free Trade Agreement |
3% |
8% |
56% |
33% |
| Canada-Colombia Free Trade Agreement |
2% |
7% |
63% |
28% |
| Canada-Costa Rica Free Trade Agreement |
2% |
8% |
60% |
30% |
| Canada-Honduras Free Trade Agreement |
1% |
5% |
65% |
29% |
| Canada-Jordan Free Trade Agreement |
1% |
4% |
65% |
29% |
| Canada-Peru Free Trade Agreement |
1% |
7% |
60% |
31% |
Return to Figure 24
Figure 25: Awareness of free trade discussions or negotiations
| |
Never heard about it |
Heard about it/do not know details |
Heard about it/know some details |
Heard about it/aware of details |
| Canada-MERCOSUR free trade agreement negotiations |
75% |
16% |
7% |
2% |
| Canada-ASEAN exploratory discussions |
60% |
28% |
9% |
3% |
| Canada-Pacific Alliance free trade negotiations |
44% |
37% |
15% |
4% |
Return to Figure 25
Figure 26: Reasons for Not Using Free Trade Agreements
| |
% |
| Don't see any benefit |
34% |
| Difficult to take advantage of FTA |
30% |
| Lack of information on FTA |
26% |
| Not interested in the markets accessible through FTAs |
19% |
| Did not know FTAs exist |
13% |
| Complex eligibility requirements |
12% |
| FTAs do not apply to our product/service |
10% |
| Reduction in tariffs is not worth the administrative costs |
8% |
| Lack of financing to facilitate cross border trade |
7% |
| Barriers resulting from linguistic/cultural differences |
6% |
| Barriers resulting from differences in legal systems |
5% |
| Use another trade agreement |
3% |
| Could not meet the rules of origin |
2% |
| Use alternative duty relief measures |
2% |
| Other |
9% |
Return to Figure 26
Figure 27: Benefits of Using Free Trade Agreements
| |
% |
| Tariff reduction/elimination on goods |
58% |
| Better conditions for exporting your services |
23% |
| Easier access to government procurement opportunities |
20% |
| Greater business certainty/stability due to investment clauses |
17% |
| Labour mobility clauses/temporary entry |
16% |
| Other |
6% |
Return to Figure 27
Figure 28: Customs Duties
| Reduced customs duties under free trade agreements is claimed by … |
% |
| … my company |
80% |
| … by the importer of goods |
76% |
| … my manufacturer |
68% |
Return to Figure 28
Figure 29: Reasons for Not Claiming Reduced Customs Duties
| |
No impact at all |
A small impact |
A moderate impact |
A big impact |
| Good not covered by FTA |
58% |
17% |
15% |
10% |
| Use tariff preferences available under WTO |
50% |
28% |
8% |
15% |
| Did not know they needed to apply |
45% |
26% |
7% |
22% |
| Long delays associated with obtaining Origin Declarations |
40% |
30% |
14% |
16% |
| Do not understand FTAs/eligibility requirements/rules of origin |
38% |
41% |
7% |
14% |
| High administrative costs of obtaining Origin Declarations |
37% |
26% |
16% |
21% |
| Did not see a significant tariff reduction |
31% |
31% |
12% |
26% |
Return to Figure 29
Figure 30: Impact of free trade agreements on labour mobility
| As a result of free trade agreements … |
Strongly agree |
Agree |
Neutral |
Disagree |
Strongly disagree |
| Our company has sent staff to free trade agreement markets |
24% |
31% |
42% |
3% |
1% |
| Our company has increased the number of business trips taken to FTA markets |
22% |
22% |
42% |
14% |
|
| Our company's management and personnel have more capacity to work in FTA markets |
22% |
44% |
35% |
|
|
| Our company's management and personnel have more capacity to access opportunities as contractors in FTA markets |
20% |
37% |
39% |
1% |
2% |
Return to Figure 30
Figure 31: Impact of free trade agreements on business practices
| As a result of free trade agreements … |
Strongly agree |
Agree |
Neutral |
Disagree |
Strongly disagree |
| Our company has improved supply chain arrangements or integration |
6% |
33% |
39% |
12% |
10% |
| Our company has improved contractual arrangements with buyers |
10% |
25% |
44% |
9% |
11% |
| Our company has changed administrative practices to build in FTA-related processes |
6% |
27% |
38% |
17% |
12% |
Return to Figure 31
Figure 32: Influence of free trade agreements on export strategy
| Free trade agreements influenced my company’s export strategy … |
% |
| … a great deal |
14% |
| … a moderate amount |
27% |
| … a small amount |
33% |
| Not at all |
26% |
Return to Figure 32
Figure 33: Areas in which free trade agreements influenced export strategy
| Free trade agreements influenced my company’s decision to … |
A great deal |
A moderate amount |
A small amount |
Not at all |
| … sell a wider range of goods or services |
29% |
26% |
23% |
22% |
| … conduct a broader range of business activities |
29% |
30% |
25% |
16% |
| … engage in offshoring or outsourcing |
21% |
25% |
26% |
28% |
| … invest in a country covered by a free trade agreement |
20% |
24% |
26% |
31% |
| … establish abroad |
20% |
24% |
16% |
40% |
| … bid for government procurement contracts in FTA markets |
18% |
19% |
23% |
41% |
Return to Figure 33
Figure 34: Other benefits of free trade agreements
| |
% |
| Increase in sales/revenue |
40% |
| Company has been able to sell to new customers in FTA markets |
31% |
| Company has increased sales to existing customers |
30% |
| Our company has not experienced any benefits |
28% |
| Products are more price competitive in our export market(s) |
26% |
| Access to specialized goods and materials outside of Canada |
24% |
| Access to specialized expertise/services outside of Canada |
13% |
| Other |
1% |
Return to Figure 34
Figure 35: Awareness of GoC resources and information
| |
% |
| I am aware of Government of Canada information and resources to help companies expand abroad |
82% |
| Not aware of Government of Canada information and resources |
18% |
Return to Figure 35
Figure 36: Awareness of TCS
| |
% |
| Aware of TCS |
50% |
| Not aware of TCS |
50% |
Return to Figure 36
Figure 37: Source of Awareness of TCS
| |
% |
| Internet |
41% |
| Referral from EDC |
13% |
| Referral from BDC |
11% |
| Third party event |
10% |
| Referral from a federal government body |
6% |
| Referral from another organization |
5% |
| Referral from a provincial government body |
7% |
| Referral from CCC |
3% |
| Other |
3% |
Return to Figure 37
Figure 38: Information Sources for Doing Business Abroad
| |
% |
| Industry/business associations |
32% |
| Business associate/colleague/partner |
32% |
| Websites/tools of trade promotion organizations |
29% |
| Professional services |
22% |
| Business trade publications |
22% |
| Customs broker/freight forwarder |
21% |
| Shipping companies |
18% |
| Financial institutions |
16% |
| Professional advisors |
16% |
| Brokers |
12% |
| Private training courses |
8% |
| Retailer |
4% |
| Other |
3% |
Return to Figure 38
Figure 39: Information Sources Used to Stay on Top of Industry Trends
| To stay on top of industry trends and general business information I use … |
% |
| Online |
77% |
| Social Media |
46% |
| Print publications |
18% |
| Facebook |
10% |
| Specialized publications |
9% |
| Television |
7% |
| Twitter |
6% |
| Radio |
4% |
| Word of mouth |
4% |
| Other |
3% |
Return to Figure 39
Figure 40: Preferred Methods to Consume information
| When learning or researching something new, my preferred method to consume is to … |
% |
| … read articles |
59% |
| … get answers from an expert |
46% |
| … have step-by-step guides |
32% |
| … attend in-person training |
31% |
| … read whitepapers |
29% |
| … watch short videos |
26% |
| … attend webinars |
19% |
| … read blogs |
14% |
| Other |
3% |
Return to Figure 40
Figure 41: Preferred Methods to Read information
| When learning or researching something new, my preferred method to read the information is to … |
% |
| … have the information summarized in an executive summary |
36% |
| … read everything |
33% |
| … look at charts/tables/infographics to understand the main points |
17% |
| … skim the information to get the main points |
15% |
Return to Figure 41
Figure 42: Preferred Device for Various Activities
| |
Laptop/Notebook |
Desktop |
Smartphone |
Tablet |
Would not do this activity digitally |
| Visit a website |
67% |
63% |
48% |
34% |
1% |
| Read emails |
63% |
61% |
53% |
28% |
|
| Answer emails |
62% |
61% |
49% |
23% |
|
| Read an article |
56% |
55% |
35% |
29% |
3% |
| Look at an infographic |
56% |
55% |
24% |
22% |
4% |
| Attend a webinar |
56% |
50% |
14% |
10% |
5% |
| Keep up to date with social media |
55% |
53% |
45% |
28% |
2% |
| Participate in a chat session |
53% |
49% |
37% |
18% |
3% |
| Manage your calendar |
52% |
45% |
41% |
18% |
12% |
| Apply for financial support |
45% |
41% |
13% |
10% |
24% |
Return to Figure 42
Figure 43: Approach to Researching Something New
| When researching something new I would … |
% |
| … start searching online, then make a decision about next steps |
83% |
| … call someone to figure out where to look, then search online |
12% |
| … would only look at information through my inbox first |
3% |
| … ask someone to reseach the information and present the findings |
2% |
Return to Figure 43
Figure 44: Companies or regions where companies are active
| Central and South America |
Europe |
Asia and the Pacific |
Middle East and Africa |
North America |
| Argentina |
Czech Republic |
Australia |
Saudi Arabia |
Mexico |
| Caribbean |
Germany |
China |
South Africa |
|
| Chile |
Poland |
Hong Kong |
West Africa |
|
| Colombia |
Russia |
India |
|
|
| Jamaica |
Sweden |
Japan |
|
|
| |
United Kingdom |
New Zealand |
|
|
| |
|
Philippines |
|
|
| |
|
Singapore |
|
|
| |
|
Taiwan |
|
|
| |
|
Thailand |
|
|
Return to Figure 44