Energy and the Canadian Economy
2.1. Chapter Summary

• Energy is an important sector of the Canadian economy. It accounted for 7.2 percent of total Canadian gross domestic product (GDP) in 2006.
• The energy sector is a source of well-paying jobs for Canadians.

• It employed some 273 000 people in 2006, representing 1.9 percent of total Canadian employment.

• In 2006, average wages and salaries in the energy sector were 73.1 percent higher
  than the national average.

• Energy products are key contributors to Canada’s merchandise trade.

• In 2006, Canada exported nearly $91 billion in energy products. Total energy exports
  now represent 20.7 percent of all Canadian merchandise exports.

• Canada is a net exporter of energy products. The energy sector’s $53.6-billion trade
  surplus in 2006 remains a key contributor to Canada’s overall merchandise trade
  surplus.
  

• The energy sector is capital intensive, providing economic stimulation to other industries, such as construction and manufacturing. In 2005, it accounted for 20 percent of all capital investment and repair expenditures throughout Canada’s economy.
• The cost of energy, which has been rising in recent years, affects other segments of the Canadian economy.

• Energy costs as a percentage of total costs (excluding capital costs) are just under the
  4 percent mark for the manufacturing sector. For energy-intensive industries,
  however, the share is much higher.

• In 2006, the average Canadian household spent 9.6 percent of its disposable income
  on energy, compared with 8.8 percent in 1997.
  

• Governments receive significant revenues from energy. For instance, revenues from federal, provincial and territorial income tax on the energy sector amounted to $7.25 billion in 2005. That amount represented more than 15 percent of income tax paid by all corporations that year.