Crowds of men and women at Bay Street and King Street.Fred Lum/The Globe and Mail
The worldwide economic recession has decelerated the pace of globalization, but not as profoundly as initially forecast. Canada has weathered the storm well. And this is welcome; the more globalized a nation's economy, the happier and wealthier its citizens. It also correlates with a higher GDP per capita, and a higher percentage of the work force in professional, knowledge-based and creative jobs.
Canada ranked 13th overall on a list of 100 countries on the just-released Globalization Index, produced by the KOF Swiss Economic Institute. Measuring trade and investment volume, and the extent to which countries apply trade and capital movement restrictions to protect their own economies, the index showed that overall globalization has slowed as a result of the 2008 financial crisis. It also measured social globalization - the extent of the free flow of information and ideas - and political globalization, the degree of political co-operation between countries.
Belgium, Austria, the Netherlands, Sweden, and Switzerland took the top five spots on the overall globalization index, while Canada ranked fourth in social globalization. The U.S. ranked 50th overall. As the world's largest economy, it can afford to be more inward-looking because it relies on internal trade and production. But in general, globalization is closely associated with a higher level of economic development, notes Richard Florida, author and director of the Martin Prosperity Institute.
As a mid-sized country, Canada is perfectly positioned to become even more globalized, which in turn will lead to greater prosperity and influence. Canada must continue to eliminate trade barriers, diversify trade, innovate and assume a greater role on the world stage.