 |
|
|
Business and Economics - Trade,
Investment and Tourism
Contacts
Interested in doing business with Japan? Visit:
Trade
- The British Columbia trade structure, compared with the rest of Canada,
is characterized by more reliance on Japan than any other province,
and less dependence on the United States.
In 2005, 12.2% of B.C.'s total exports went to Japan. By comparison,
in the same period only 2.0% of exports from all Canada were sent to
Japan.
In 2005, 64.4% of total B.C. exports were sent to the U.S. This compares
with the fact that 83.9% of Canadian exports went to the U.S. in the
same year.
- Trade from B.C. to Japan increased rapidly from the middle of the
1980s, reaching 27.8% of all B.C. exports in 1990, but since the collapse
of Japan's "bubble economy", and due to a surge in the consumer
market in the U.S., B.C.'s economic dependence on Japan has now lessened
considerably.
In dollar terms, B.C. exports to Japan peaked in value in 1995 at $6.7
billion. However, due to economic stagnation in Japan, the value of
exports to Japan the declined until 2003.
Since 2003, a strengthening Japanese economy, plus high international
prices for British Columbia's natural resources have caused an increase
in exports to Japan in 2004 and 2005.
B.C. exports mainly natural resource based products to Japan, such as
lumber and building materials, mining (especially coal, copper and aluminum),
and fishery products.
- B.C.'s trade with Japan occupies a very important part of the total
trade between Canada and Japan.
In 2005, B.C. exports occupied 45.6% of all Canadian exports to Japan,
and in the same year B.C. received 31.1 % of all Canadian imports from
Japan.
Japan for many years has been British Columbia's second largest trading
partner, after the United States. In 2005 however, for the first time,
total trade (imports and exports) between B.C. and China surpassed total
trade between B.C. and Japan.
Investment
- There are 171 Japan affiliated companies with offices in B.C, according
to an October 2005 survey. Most of these companies are in the general
trading, lumber, pulp and paper, construction, coal and other mining,
and tourism sectors.
- Some Japan affiliated companies in B.C. have undergone re-organization
or sale in recent years, reflecting head office restructuring in Japan.
- The Canadian Autoparts Toyota Inc. (CAPTIN) wheel manufacturing facility
in Delta is an example of the positive contributions to B.C. of investment
from Japan. The CAPTIN plant began production of aluminum automobile
wheels in 1983. The facility has since made 1.45 million wheels per
year for the North American and Japanese markets. It is a $160 million
CDN investment in B.C. and employs over 220 people.
- British Columbia encourages foreign investment from all countries,
including Japan, through such policies as offering moderately priced
hydro-electricity for new investment in the province.
Tourism
- Japanese tourism to Canada through B.C. has significantly declined
due to international fears about the disease SARS in 2003. Since then,
Japanese tourism to B.C. has rebounded strongly.
Visitors from Japan to B.C.
2001 = 252, 915
2002 = 273, 699
2003 = 183, 080
2004 = 243,957
2005 = 240,894
|
|
