Business performance and ownership

Description: Reports on Special Business Projects is an occasional series that focuses primarily on the results of special surveys or special projects conducted by the Centre for Special Business Projects. The reports cover a wide range of topics, which include business performance and trends, custom tabulations of business data, economic impact studies, new measurement frameworks and indicators to support program development, monitoring and performance assessment, territorial economic indicators and other special studies.

Description: This table contains 38 series, with data starting from 1957 (not all combinations necessarily have data for all years). This table contains data described by the following dimensions (Not all combinations are available): Geography (1 item: Canada), Rates (38 items: Bank rate; Chartered bank administered interest rates - prime business; Chartered bank - consumer loan rate; Forward premium or discount (-), United States dollars in Canada: 1 month; ...).

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Monthly credit aggregates for the private non-financial corporations sector, by category.

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Monthly credit aggregates for the assets of the financial corporation sector, by category.

Description: The need for alternative data sources is of growing importance for both supplementing Statistics Canada's data holdings and for nowcasting economic activity. In response to this need, Statistics Canada initiated the development of a Real-time Local Business Conditions Index (RT-LBCI). The index brings together data from a few different sources, including Google's Places API (containing data on temporary and permanent businesses closures), TomTom Real-time traffic API (road traffic data), as well as information from Statistics Canada data holdings (monthly retail and wholesale, Business Register, etc.). The project aims to compute a near real-time index of economic activity in Canadian major cities.

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This table contains 27 series, with data starting from 1981 (not all combinations necessarily have data for all years). This table contains data described by the following dimensions (Not all combinations are available): Geography (1 item: Canada); Type of currency (27 items: Australian dollar, daily average; Brazilian real, daily average; Chinese renminbi, daily average; European euro, daily average; ...).

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The RT-LBCI is released as an experimental statistic. It is intended to provide a real-time signal on business activities following the disruptions brought about by the pandemic and through the recovery phase.

Description: This table contains 16 series, with data starting from 1946 (not all combinations necessarily have data for all years). This table contains data described by the following dimensions (Not all combinations are available): Geography (1 items: Canada ...), Foreign currency assets and liabilities (16 items: Foreign currency assets; securities; Foreign currency assets; call loans; Total; foreign currency assets; Foreign currency assets; other loans ...).

Description: This table contains 8 series, with data starting from 1992 (not all combinations necessarily have data for all years). This table contains data described by the following dimensions (Not all combinations are available): Geography (1 item: Canada), Rates (8 items: Bank rate; Treasury bill auction - average yields: 3 month; Treasury bill auction - average yields: 6 month; Treasury bill auction - average yields: 1 year; ...).

Description: The Extractive Sector Transparency Measures Act (ESTMA) Data Portal is a collaboration between Statistics Canada and Natural Resources Canada, which administers the ESTMA. The ESTMA helps the Government of Canada deter corruption in the extractive sector by requiring extractive entities that are active in Canada to publicly disclose, on an annual basis, certain types of payments made to governments in Canada and abroad. The goal of the data portal is to increase the accessibility and utility of the payment information collected under the ESTMA by bringing together all available ESTMA data in one online location, and further enriching the payment data with analytical functions that help users to leverage the complete ESTMA dataset. The database has also been designed with mobility in mind to ensure that users and stakeholders have mobile access to ESTMA data.

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Canadian Business Counts, location counts with employees, by North American Industry Classification System (NAICS), census metropolitan areas and census subdivisions, June 2021.

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Total value (x 1,000,000) of goods or services purchased, by North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code and enterprise size, based on a one-year observation period. Goods or services include goods for use as intermediate input for domestic production, goods for resale “as-is,” distribution and logistics services, call and help centre services, marketing and sales services, information and communication technology (ICT) services, professional services, engineering and research and development (R&D) services, and other types of goods or services. Estimates refer to fiscal year 2017 (end date falling after January 1, 2017 and on or before December 31, 2017).

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Percentage of enterprises for which specific obstacles to exporting or attempting to export goods or services were not at all difficult, somewhat difficult, difficult, very difficult or not applicable, by North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code and enterprise size, based on a one-year observation period. Obstacles to exporting or attempting to export include administrative obstacles and resource limitations—Canadian legal or administrative obstacles, foreign legal or administrative obstacles, foreign tariffs or trade barriers, concerns over intellectual property (IP) protection, access to financing, lack of internal resources or capacity, and lack of management know-how; external barriers—efficiency, capacity or reliability of transportation infrastructures, and shipping costs; market obstacles—identifying foreign customers, obtaining knowledge on markets of interest, identifying foreign partners, suppliers or distributors, uncertainty of foreign or international standards, and receiving payment from foreign customers; and other obstacles—all other obstacles to exporting or attempting to export.

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Percentage of enterprises that imported goods or services from a business operating outside Canada to resell them “as-is”, use them in production of other goods or services, or use them to support business activities, by North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code and enterprise size, based on a one-year observation period.

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Total value (x 1,000,000) of goods or services purchased from Canadian sources, foreign affiliates and unaffiliated foreign businesses, by North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code and enterprise size, based on a one-year observation period. Goods or services include goods for use as intermediate input for domestic production, goods for resale “as-is,” distribution and logistics services, call and help centre services, marketing and sales services, information and communication technology (ICT) services, professional services, engineering and research and development (R&D) services and other types of goods or services. Estimates refer to fiscal year 2017 (end date falling after January 1, 2017 and on or before December 31, 2017).

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Percentage of enterprises that purchased goods or services, by North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code and enterprise size, based on a one-year observation period. Goods or services include goods for use as intermediate input for domestic production, goods for resale “as-is,” distribution and logistics services, call and help centre services, marketing and sales services, information and communication technology (ICT) services, professional services, engineering and research and development (R&D) services, and other types of goods or services. Estimates refer to fiscal year 2017 (end date falling after January 1, 2017 and on or before December 31, 2017).

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Percentage of enterprises for which specific reasons for purchasing goods or services from unaffiliated foreign businesses were not at all important, somewhat important, important, very important or not applicable, by North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code and enterprise size, based on a one-year observation period. Reasons for purchasing goods or services from unaffiliated foreign businesses include reduced labour costs, reduced costs other than labour costs, better quality goods or services, no suppliers available in Canada, reduced delivery times, increased access to supply chains or regional trade networks, access to specialized knowledge or technologies, tax or other financial incentives, lack of available labour in Canada, and other reasons for purchasing goods or services from an unaffiliated business outside Canada. Estimates refer to fiscal year 2017 (end date falling after January 1, 2017 and on or before December 31, 2017).

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Percentage of enterprises that exported and did not export goods or services outside Canada, by North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code and enterprise size, based on a one-year observation period. Enterprises that exported are broken down into exporters with unsuccessful attempts to export to additional markets, and exporters with unsuccessful attempts to export additional goods or services. Enterprises that did not export are broken down into non-exporters with unsuccessful attempts to export.

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Percentage of enterprises that sold goods or services to another business in Canada that then exported these goods or services "as-is", or used the goods as intermediate inputs in a final good that was then exported, by North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code and enterprise size, based on a one-year observation period.

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Percentage of enterprises that had mixed modes of import of goods or services, direct export of goods or services, and sales of goods or services that were then exported "as-is" (indirect exporter) or used as intermediate inputs and then exported (intermediary exporter), by North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code and enterprise size, based on a one-year observation period.

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This paper examines the course of profitability of large Canadian-resident enterprises over the period 1990-98. It focuses first on the differences in the profitability of Canadian-controlled and U.S.-controlled enterprises and asks whether there are differences in trends in profitability by country of ownership over the business cycle experienced in the 1990s. It uses micro-economic data on the profitability of large non-integrated firms to investigate the role played by market share in determining profitability in each group and the extent to which profits that deviate from the mean are forced quickly or slowly back to their long-run equilibrium values. Both facets of profit behaviour are related to the nature of competition in the markets served by firms. Finally, it examines the role played by changes in the Canada-U.S. exchange rate in determining profitability in order to understand the extent to which each group uses these changes to adjust their foreign prices and thus to affect reported Canadian profits.

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This paper tracks the growth and decline of information and communications technology (ICT) industries that were synonymous with the so-called new economy boom of the late-1990s and its subsequent bust period in the early 2000s. The analysis focuses on the question of whether the ICT bust has been accompanied by a structural shift illustrated by less firm turnover. It shows that to date there is little evidence of a structural shift. Entry rates of new establishments within the ICT sector were above those of other sectors within the economy during both the ICT boom and bust. This is evidence that both firms and entrepreneurs continued to see opportunities to develop new products and markets even during a time of retrenchment. The location of the ICT sector also show little evidence of a change.

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This working paper illustrates the industries and communities that have the highest proportions of quickly growing small firms. It provides an estimate of the number of small companies that have grown to medium-sized between 1995 and 2000. The data analysed in this paper are from the LEAP-SAF (Longitudinal Employment Analysis Program: Small Area File), a synthetic database constructed from various administrative sources.

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This paper uses a detailed industry-level data base of industry prices in the manufacturing sector in Canada and the United States to investigate whether prices are co-integrated in the two countries and whether the relationship between the two sets of prices follows the law of one price. We find that aggregate Canadian price movements track U.S. price movements closely, but not perfectly, in the long run. But there are substantial deviations from the law of one price in the short run. Moreover, many individual industries deviate from the law of one price. These deviations are related to the degree of tariff protection and to the degree of product differentiation at the industry level.

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The two most commonly used measures of R&D intensity are R&D spending as a percentage of total revenue, commonly applied at the firm level, and R&D spending as a percentage of value-added, when measuring R&D in the total economy. This article highlights the interval 1997 to 2002, a period for which consistent data are available, to compare the two measures.

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This article provides an overview of the work to date using GST data at Statistics Canada as direct replacement in imputation or estimation or as a data certification tool.

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This paper presents a probabilistic model which estimates the number of enterprises in different strata and applies logistic regression to estimate the probability of companies' activity statuses based on a survey on existence.

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There is much debate over whether agents form rational expectations of variables or whether they suffer from systematic errors in judgment. This paper estimates models for plant-level survey data in order to test rationality for those manufacturing plants that report expectations of capital expenditures. An advantage of using such data is that rationality is tested in markets where agents may not have knowledge of each others' expectations so strategic motives behind purposefully irrational forecasts are minimized. Statistical estimates and test results suggest that expectations may indeed be rational depending on size. That is to say that the larger a plant is, the more resources it can expend on forecasting its future needs. Thus, the statistical results in this paper validate, for the first time, a class of assumptions in the macroeconomic literature.

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This working paper examines whether the innovative characteristics of small manufacturing firms that show high growth are significantly different from those of other types of small manufacturing firms. Two groups of small firms are analysed: those with 20 to 49 employees and those with 50 to 99 employees in 1997.

The data analysed in this paper are from the Survey of Innovation 1999, which surveyed manufacturing provincial enterprises with at least 20 employees and at least $250,000 in revenues. Data from the Survey of Innovation 1999 has been linked to the Annual Survey of Manufactures for 1997 and 1999, and the growth of firms was determined based on this data. Eight different indicators of the innovative characteristics of small firms are presented.

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The paper examines how Canadian manufacturing plants have responded to reductions in tariff barriers between Canada and the rest of world over the past two decades.

Description: Rural Canada Non-Profits (RCNP) is a database that provides estimates of Non-Profit Organization (NPO) counts, total revenue and total employment in Canada. This document presents the data sources, methods and classification concepts used in the production of the RCNP.

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The North American Product Classification System (NAPCS) is the departmental standard for the classification of products (goods and services). The classification is a joint project of the national statistical agencies of Canada, Mexico and the United States. NAPCS is used to produce product statistics on a variety of topics, including the value of outputs of industries, the consumption by businesses and households, the value of imports and exports, and the movement of industrial and raw material prices. NAPCS Canada comprises definitions for all categories that include a descriptive text, as well as illustrative examples, inclusions and exclusions where appropriate.

Email: statcan.csds-standardsproducts-cnsd-normesproduits.statcan@statcan.gc.ca

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The mandate of the Analytical Studies Branch (ASB) is to provide high-quality, relevant and timely information on economic, health and social issues that are important to Canadians. The branch strategically makes use of expert knowledge and a large range of statistical sources to describe, draw inferences from, and make objective and scientifically supported deductions about the evolving nature of the Canadian economy and society. Research questions are addressed by applying leading-edge methods, including microsimulation and predictive analytics using a range of linked and integrated administrative and survey data. In supporting greater access to data, ASB linked data are made available to external researchers and policy makers to support evidence-based decision making. Research results are disseminated by the branch using a range of mediums (i.e., research papers, studies, infographics, videos, and blogs) to meet user needs. The branch also provides analytical support and training, feedback, and quality assurance to the wide range of programs within and outside Statistics Canada.

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The Chart of Accounts comprises a balance sheet, an income statement and selected other accounts. The balance sheet provides information on the financial position of a business. The income statement provides information on the performance of a business. The elements of the balance sheet are assets, liabilities and equity. The elements of the income statement are revenues; expenses; gains/losses, corporate taxes and other items; and extraordinary gains/losses, non-recurring items and adjustments.

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This paper provides an overview of the productivity program at Statistics Canada and a brief description of Canada's productivity performance. The paper defines productivity and the various measures that are used to investigate different aspects of productivity growth. It describes the difference between partial productivity measures (such as labour productivity) and a more complete measure (multifactor productivity) and the advantages and disadvantages of each. The paper explains why productivity is important. It outlines how productivity growth fits into the growth accounting framework and how this framework is used to examine the various sources of economic growth. The paper briefly discusses the challenges that face statisticians in measuring productivity growth. It also provides an overview of Canada's long-term productivity performance and compares Canada to the United States - both in terms of productivity levels and productivity growth rates.

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This newsletter is a brief description of projects within the Business and Labour Market Analysis Division of Statistics Canada. The research covers a wide range of topics including labour market issues, low income, immigration, business firm dynamics, pensions, productivity, technology and innovation, as well as economic geography.

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This product contains presentations done at Statistics Canada's annual Economic Conference which provides a forum for the exchange of empirical research among the business, government, research and labour communities. The conference is also a means to promote economic and socio-economic analysis while subjecting existing data to critical assessment as part of an ongoing process of statistical development and review.

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This activity is designed to show students some of the changes affecting Prairie agriculture over the past 100 years, and how Prairie farmers have adapted to them.

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This paper discusses the approach that Statistics Canada has taken to improve the quality of annual business surveys through their integration in the Unified Enterprise Survey (UES). The primary objective of the UES is to measure the final annual sales of goods and services accurately by province, in sufficient detail and in a timely manner.

This paper describes the methodological approaches that the UES has used to improve financial and commodity data quality in four broad areas. These include improved coherence of the data collected from different levels of the enterprise, better coverage of industries, better depth of information (in the sense of more content detail and estimates for more detailed domains) and better consistency of the concepts and methods across industries.

The approach, in achieving quality, has been to (a) establish a base measure of the quality of the business survey program prior to the UES, (b) measure the annual data quality of the UES, and (c) carry out specific studies to better understand the quality of UES data and methods.

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These papers consist of research related to business and trade statistics.