Ontario’s Economy

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About Ontario Province

Ontario is one of the 13 provinces and territories of Canada. It is located in east-central Canada, bordered by the province of Manitoba to the west, and the province of Quebec to the east, and to the south by the U.S. states of Minnesota, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania and New York.

According to Statistics Canada, Ontario is the most populous province in Canada. Ontario is home to about 40 percent of all Canadians. 2 in 5 Canadians 14,063,256 (estimated by 2016), live in Ontario. And Ontario, 1,076,395 km2 (415,598 sq mi) in total area, is the second-largest province or the fourth-largest province/territory in Canada.

Ontario is home to the so-called "Golden Horseshoe". Canada's largest concentration of people and cities is in the "Golden Horseshoe" along the western shore of Lake Ontario, which includes the Greater Toronto Area, Hamilton, St. Catharines and Niagara Falls. The “Greater Golden Horseshoe” has more than 9 million people, this area is one of the fastest growing areas in North America.

About Ontario's Economy

Ontario is part of the North American manufacturing heartland. It is Canada's leading manufacturing province, accounting for 52% of the total national manufacturing shipments (2004). Ontario generates 37% of the national GDP and is home to almost 50% of all employees in high technologies, financial services and other knowledge-intensive industries.

Ontario is home to the nation's capital city, Ottawa, and the nation's most populous city, Toronto. Toronto, the capital of Ontario, is the centre of Canada's financial services and banking industry. Neighbouring cities are home to product distribution, IT centres, and various manufacturing industries.

Ontario's key manufacturing industries include automobile, information and communications technologies, biotechnologies, pharmaceuticals and medical devices. Ontario is the largest sub-national automotive assembly jurisdiction in North America. 88% of Ontario's vehicle production was exported (2011), with almost all of the exports destined for the United States. Ontario’s manufacturing businesses shipped more than $258 billion in 2011. Ontario has, after California and Texas, the third most manufacturing employees of any jurisdiction in Canada and the United States.

The services sector is the largest part of Ontario's economy. It employs 79% (or 5.3 million people) of the province and makes up 76.9% of the province’s economy. Ontario's major services sector include business and financial services, professional and scientific technical services.

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