What has been Canadas experience with the North American Free Trade Agreement(Nafta)?
Even before the Nafta which Canada became the signatory to in 1994, it had entered into a free trade agreement with the USA in 1989. Both these moves were initially opposed by Canadian businessmen who were of the opinion that their businesses would suffer as a result of competition. In fact the years 1989 to 1992 were indeed intriguing with a number of companies going out of business, thousands of people losing their jobs and a 15-per cent drop in production. As there was a sudden drop in tariff barriers, Canadian firms, specially those that relied on tariff protection and subsidies found that they could not take on foreign competition. However, after the initial shock, Canadian businessmen were able to adjust to the changing environment and the economy is once again on a strong growth-path. Real exports are up almost 100 per cent since 1989 and in 1998 the trade surplus stood at two per cent of GDP. Real domestic spending, on the other hand, has risen by a mere 20 per cent. An export-
