In todays post for the Zealy quest for the LeoFinance adoption campain I am writing about the [Ecomomy in Canada. Being from Canada that seems like the thing to do.
During my research the first thing I had to do was to find out is economics and monetary policy the same thing? So of course I had to s](/@@leoglossary/leoglossary-economy) earch it. And here is what I came up with.
“Monetary Policy vs. Fiscal Policy: An Overview
Monetary policy and fiscal policy refer to the two most widely recognized tools used to influence a nation's economic activity. Monetary policy is primarily concerned with the management of interest rates and the total supply of money in circulation and is generally carried out by central banks, such as the U.S. Federal Reserve. Fiscal policy is a collective term for the taxing and spending actions of governments.”Source
Fiscal PolicySource
“Generally speaking, the aim of most government fiscal policies is to target the total level of spending, the total composition of spending, or both in an economy. The two most widely used means of affecting fiscal policy are changes in government spending policies or in government tax policies.
If a government believes there is not enough business activity in an economy, it can increase the amount of money it spends, often referred to as stimulus spending. If there are not enough tax receipts to pay for the spending increases, governments borrow money by issuing debt securities such as government bonds and, in the process, accumulate debt. This is referred to as deficit spending.”
Now that I have given some back ground let me dig into Canada.
A lot of what I am going to talk about comes from the following souce: COVID’s economic, fiscal and health effects—a mixed bag for Canada.
First we all have to understand that we are coming out of Covid19 (hopefully) and the world is much different than when we came into it. “As the COVID-19 pandemic recedes into history, it’s important for governments in Canada to understand the effects so they can better manage future pandemics.”
I can give one example from my work place. Before the pandemic we use to have a parking lot full of new vehicle. Put could come and look around and test drive. Now we have nothing. Everything is pre-ordered. This is both good and bad. It is bad for the customer but for the dealership there is no overhead of carrying the cost of new vehicle sitting on the lot. Vehicles are in and out. Better for the dealership.
“In terms of economic effects, out of 40 IMF advanced economies, Canada ranked 29th in estimated real per-capita GDP growth from 2019 to 2022 and second-worst in the G7. And during the first pandemic year, Canada had the second-worst employment drop at 5.1 per cent, just ahead of the United States. However, during the rebound in 2021, Canada had the second-highest employment growth. With respect to inflation, in 2021 Canada was mid-ranked (19th highest). However, a high share of Canada’s inflation appears to be linked to demand-side rather than supply-side factors. As well, Canada ranked 9th out of 30 OECD comparator countries for the size of the pandemic increase in housing prices.”
What did that paragraph mean? I take away is that Canada sucked during the pandemic. Their response did nothing for the economy. They more than likely made it worse. They were throwing money out to people with no reguard to the future. All we heard on the news, day in and day out, was we will look after you. We will get money into the hands of Canadians who need it.
On a side note, now they are clawing a lot of that back. Lesson: Read the fine print when people are throwing money at you. As politsions will not give that to you in TV speaches.
Lets get to some history.
“Canada is one of the world’s richest nations, with a highly sophisticated economy and a top-tier standard of living. Though obviously not everyone in Canada is equally well-off, most Canadians nevertheless hold reasonably well-paying jobs and access to ample creature comforts that citizens in many other countries can only dream of.”
That is the good news. You may have heard the term “The American Dream” and many people from all over the world try to come to the USA for the American Dream. I can tell you that you can do the same thing in Canada.
There are a few things off the top of my head that concern me about our economy, nor for the economy itself but for how it affects the ‘middle class’. We are highly taxed country. My wages fall into a 26 percent tax bracket. I pay 15 percent sales tax when shopping. There is fuel tax on gas and home heating fuel. There is carbon tax and more carbon tax coming.
The government has a spending problem, most always in defict and they try to get their finances, fix the economy, on the backs of the middle class and poor.
“Canada was basically founded as a money-making scheme. In the 17th century, when North America was first being colonized by the French and British, the northern half of the continent was considered an alluring place because of all the furry woodland creatures it contained, since beautiful, glossy furs were one of the most desired possessions of wealthy Europeans of the time. For centuries, the early Canadian colonies thrived under a simple economic system known as the fur trade, where hunters gathered and sold animal skins under the employment of large fur corporations — mostly the Hudson’s Bay Company — who then used their profits to purchase land and build trading posts in new areas where even more fur could be found.”
There it is, I found that little bit of history funny, and I did not know about. I was going to say that explains alot about our country. But in truth, nothing changes. It comes down to the gread of most of human kind.
“Canada’s Modern Economy and Industries
Having largely abandoned the country’s agricultural-manufacturing past, today upwards of 75 per cent of Canadians work in what is dubbed the service sector of the economy, while only a small minority still work in farms or factories. The service sector of the Canadian economy is extremely vast and diverse, and basically entails any sort of (mostly) non-physical work that deals with helping people, rather than making or growing things. Most Canadians who live in large cities like Toronto, Vancouver, or Montreal work in the service sector.”
There are still small places. Like here in Newfoundland, I live in a town of about 4,000 people and I commute about 20 minutes to the ‘City’ of 25,000 for my emplyement.
That is a little history lesson for you on the Canadian economy. I could go on for 100,000 words but I am going to sum up with some of my own thoughts.
From my 50 plus years on this planet I do not believe a government can fully control an economy. They can try, they add incentives but in the end it is upto the people, up to business to stimulate an economy.
If we all start hording our money, stopping investing in business, stop expanding business then the economy starts to slow, it could go into recession or depression. If we keep spending our desposeable income then the ecconmy can keep growing. It truly is our choice if we want to see a bear or bull market.
Basically the new media, the government scare us into what way to go. I have never been a follower. If times are great or times are bad I try to live my life the same. I try to pay my bills, I try to keep the house hold running. I try and keep my wife happy.
If I have the news on and they tell me about the government defict, taxes going up, blaw blaw blaw, I, if I have to, adjust my spending.
Economics of the country you live in and most of the world is something we all should have knowledge of us as it will help your understanding. But the best economics is your personal ones. Understand what you have coming in and going out. Try not to carry to much debt and live your life.
Bradley
