The US energy sector has a surprising amount of Canada in it.
Canada’s energy industry is a major driver of that country’s economy, even in areas where development of new fuel resources isn’t the focus. Cheap hydropower helps underpin the manufacturing sector in the Eastern part of the country, while access to a vast array of natural resources in Alberta and British Columbia are major parts of the western provincial economies.
That energy development in turn helps drive economic growth that has kept Canada’s employment rate from scraping the same lows that the US figures have.
AOL Jobs wrote today about the strength of the Canadian employment picture, with the country’s unemployment rate a full two percentage points lower than in its southern neighbor and largest trading partner.
“Canada’s quick rebound is the result of a combination of factors, [Cornell University’s Alex] Colvin says. First off, Canada’s economy differs from the U.S. in that Canada’s economy is much more “resource driven,” he says, noting, for example, that oil is a major export — unlike the U.S., which imports far more oil than it produces,” AOL Jobs said today in “Canada’s Economic Miracle: How Our Northern Neighbor Avoided Economic Calamity.”
“Government regulation has also helped to smooth out many bumps in the Canadian economy, Colvin told AOL Jobs. Stricter banking rules, compared to the U.S., for the example, meant there was no mortgage crisis in Canada. “It’s a much more concentrated and regulated banking industry,” he says, which makes it “much more stable.”
Energy employment is a prominent part of the Canadian employment success story. The country’s energy industry employs roughly 650,000 people and equally importantly, pays comparatively high wages according to the Canadian Centre for Energy.
As the debates over employment and domestic energy industry development continue to grow in volume, US politicians and energy industry executives are taking note of the country’s policies.
Members of the US Congress have a largely positive view of Canada as an energy provider, a May 10 report from Canada’s Fraser Institute said.
“The report found that members of Congress generally view Canada in a positive light when it comes to trade in energy and environmental management,” Fraser Institute said in releasing the report. “Most legislators, with a few notable exceptions, see Canada as a stable source of energy imports and a key component in their strategy for energy security.”
