In 2017, 154,225 enterprises in Canada imported goods from abroad, up 5,339 from 2016. The growth was widespread among every sector of the economy.
Small and medium importing enterprises (SMEs) accounted for 98.6% of all importers in the country in 2017. These firms were responsible for 47.3% of total Canadian imports by value. From 2010 to 2017, imports by SMEs grew by 43.6% compared with 34.1% for large enterprises.
Canadian enterprises diversified their markets for imports from 2010 to 2017, with 59.4% of all Canadian importers purchasing goods from both US and other foreign countries in 2017, up from 56.6% in 2010.
Geographical diversification of imports also differs depending on the size of the importing enterprise. In 2017, 89.9% of all large enterprises imported goods from both US and non-US markets, compared with 58.9% of all SMEs.
This has been excerpted from a 25 May 2018 release by Statistics Canada.