Poor Canada
With the Loonie past the US dollar for the first time since the ’70s, ($1.06!) Canadians can now look to the US for cheap products. Well, actually, it was common before, but now all of the shipping markups don’t seem quite as steep with the dollar so weak.
Canada’s got it good, though - they’re still capable of making things, or if not, at least they have raw materials. Canada’s pretty much made of raw materials, with a few people scattered here and there. However, having a strong currency isn’t always a good thing.
Sure, you can buy a lot of stuff. And you can outsource labor cheaply to those Americans south of the border. (This is a huge stretch right now with the current dollar parity, but if the trend continues, it may apply.)
The model only works well, though, if you make something, or sell what you have. The US became what is called a ’service economy’ once we realized we didn’t have a lot in the way of exportable resources, and had lost most of our ability to manufacture things. The same problem may recur up north now. From a recent Globe and Mail article:
Can a society survive by serving each other lattes? People rise in the morning, go to their posts and start feeding the customers. But everyone does it, so they’re all running in and out, serving and being served. I have to finish this croissant so I can rush back and make you a falafel. I extend the metaphor to those who serve information or entertainment. That’s the shell of an economy left when you produce almost nothing for basic need.
(source here)
It’s a good summary of where a lot of the US is right now - “in the latte pits”. Right now we’re holding things together with a delicate fabric of technology, and some returning manufacturing. Canada probably won’t go as far down that road as we did, simply because of their wealth of resources, but hey, if they do, at least we know we’ll all get their outsourced jobs!