Ottawa, July 8th, 2020—The uptick in exports two years after the implementation of the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) between Canada and the EU has accrued more to EU businesses than Canadian businesses, suggesting that Canada could more effectively leverage CETA to access one of the largest marketplaces in the world.
From end of 2017 to end of 2018, exports from the EU to Canada increased by 11%, whereas exports from Canada to the EU grew only by 4%.
This study titled CETA: Strengthening Canada-EU Ties and Scaling the Canadian Digital Economy offers an overview one of Canada’s most progressive free trade agreements and identifies opportunities for improving Canada’s digital technology trade with the EU.
The report includes:
• An overview of the EU’s digital strengths
• EU’s top tech imports and key areas of consumer demand for digital goods and services
• Interviews with EU business leaders that examine the attractiveness of Canada as a trade partner
• Individual EU country profiles to identify market opportunities for Canadian digital businesses
A key study finding suggests that EU organizations would do more business with Canadian tech companies if they had better access to information related to the benefits of working with Canada and a better understanding of Canada’s differing provincial regulations.
“While the Coronavirus pandemic continues to have far-reaching impacts on international trade, CETA offers a large and stable market to provision alternative supply chains, scale businesses, and set the stage for a robust economic recovery post COVID-19,” said Namir Anani, ICTC President & CEO.
ICTC is a not-for-profit, national centre of expertise for strengthening Canada’s digital advantage in a global economy. Through trusted research, practical policy advice, and creative capacity-building programs, ICTC fosters globally competitive Canadian industries enabled by innovative and diverse digital talent. In partnership with a vast network of industry leaders, academic partners, and policy makers from across Canada, ICTC has empowered a robust and inclusive digital economy for over 25 years.
For media inquiries or further information about CETA: Strengthening Canada-EU Ties and Scaling the Canadian Digital Economy, please contact Paul Stastny at [email protected] or 403.351.0138 Ext. 823.
This report was funded by Global Affairs Canada.
A copy of the study is available here
A French-language version of this press release is available here
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