Updated December 11, 2003

The economy

	Calgary, Alta. Photo: Paul Jones

Canada has come a long way from the economic revolution sparked by the railway and the telegraph in the early 1800s. Over the years, a steady tide of technological progress has profoundly reshaped our economy, making possible the combustion engine, the assembly line, computer networks and professional consultants. Today, economic progress rides an electronic expressway of automation, information and instant communication. Advances in technology, the increased globalization of markets and the emergence of liberal trading regimes are fundamentally changing the way we conduct our business. Long removed from an economy based almost exclusively on natural resources, Canada is rapidly moving toward a knowledge-based economy built on innovation and technology. Canada's knowledge-intensive industries are generating advances in our ability to produce high-tech machinery and equipment, and encouraging industrial innovation as a result.

Canadian businesses are 'getting connected' more than ever before, exploiting advances in communications technology to reach out into the global marketplace in search of buyers for their products. Indeed, with a small domestic market, the steady expansion of multilateral trade is critical to the structure of our economy and the continued prosperity of our nation.