Terms of trade, GDP and the exchange rate

This article focus on the reasons for the recent sharp shift in Canada's terms of trade and the distributional effects on the economy, which have already been considerable. We also look to the recent American experience with a sharply rising dollar as a guide to how different sectors of the economy could gain or lose from these changes. The terms of international trade - defined as the ratio of our export prices to import prices - shifted in favour of importers at the expenses of exporters.