Economy of Quebec
Encyclopedia
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
, is diversified and post-industrial
Post-industrial society
If a nation becomes "post-industrial" it passes through, or dodges, a phase of society predominated by a manufacturing-based economy and moves on to a structure of society based on the provision of information, innovation, finance, and services.-Characteristics:...
with an average potential for growth. Manufacturing and the Service sectors dominate the economy. The economy of Quebec is among the largest in the world ranked the 44th largest just behind Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
. Quebec is also ranked the 21st largest in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. The economy of Quebec represents 19.80% of the total GDP of Canada.
Aerospace
There are some 260 companies of the aerospace sector that employ 40,000 people. It includes aerospace companies such as airplane manufacturer BombardierBombardier Aerospace
Bombardier Aerospace is a division of Bombardier Inc. and is the third-largest airplane manufacturer in the world. It is headquartered in Dorval, Quebec, Canada.- History :...
, jet engine companies Pratt & Whitney
Pratt & Whitney
Pratt & Whitney is a U.S.-based aerospace manufacturer with global service operations. It is a subsidiary of United Technologies Corporation . Pratt & Whitney's aircraft engines are widely used in both civil aviation and military aviation. Its headquarters are in East Hartford, Connecticut, USA...
and Rolls-Royce Canada
Rolls-Royce North America
Rolls-Royce North America, Inc. is a subsidiary of Rolls-Royce plc involved principally in the manufacture of gas turbine engines and other propulsion systems...
, flight simulator builder CAE
CAE (company)
CAE Inc. is a leading provider of simulation technologies, modelling technologies and integrated training services to airlines, aircraft manufacturers, and defense customers worldwide. The company has annual revenues in excess of CAD $1.6 billion, with manufacturing operations and training...
, and defence contractor Lockheed Martin
Lockheed Martin
Lockheed Martin is an American global aerospace, defense, security, and advanced technology company with worldwide interests. It was formed by the merger of Lockheed Corporation with Martin Marietta in March 1995. It is headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland, in the Washington Metropolitan Area....
and L-3 Communications
L-3 Communications
L-3 Communications Holdings, Inc. is a company that supplies command and control, communications, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance systems and products, avionics, ocean products, training devices and services, instrumentation, space, and navigation products. Its customers include...
. Various international organisations have established their headquarters in Quebec, notably the International Air Transport Association
International Air Transport Association
The International Air Transport Association is an international industry trade group of airlines headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, where the International Civil Aviation Organization is also headquartered. The executive offices are at the Geneva Airport in SwitzerlandIATA's mission is to...
and the International Civil Aviation Organization
International Civil Aviation Organization
The International Civil Aviation Organization , pronounced , , is a specialized agency of the United Nations. It codifies the principles and techniques of international air navigation and fosters the planning and development of international air transport to ensure safe and orderly growth...
.
Finance
The Finance, insurance, real estate and leasing industry employs 218,000 people, including the largest money manager in Canada, Caisse de dépôt et placement du QuébecCaisse de dépôt et placement du Québec
The Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec manages public pension plans in the Canadian province of Quebec. It was founded in 1965 by an act of the National Assembly...
.
Ground transportation
Quebec's ground transportation industry generated $7.2 billion in revenue at the beginning of 2004. It employs some 35,000 people and includes major original equipment manufacturers such as BombardierBombardier Transportation
Bombardier Transportation is the rail equipment division of the Canadian firm, Bombardier Inc. Bombardier Transportation is one of the world's largest companies in the rail-equipment manufacturing and servicing industry. Its headquarters are in Berlin, Germany....
, PACCAR
PACCAR
PACCAR Inc is the third largest manufacturer of heavy-duty trucks in the world , and has substantial manufacture in light and medium vehicles through its various subsidiaries.-History:...
, NovaBUS, Prévost CAR
Prevost Car
Prevost is a Quebec, Canada-based manufacturer of touring coaches and bus shells for high-end motorhomes and specialty conversions.The company now owns Nova Bus and in turn is owned by Volvo Bus Corporation.- History :...
, Komatsu International, and many suppliers and sub-contractors.
Other transportation
Quebec has eight deepwater ports for merchandise shipping, and in 2003 9.7 million tons of merchandise was carried by 3,886 cargo ships through the Saint Lawrence SeawaySaint Lawrence Seaway
The Saint Lawrence Seaway , , is the common name for a system of locks, canals and channels that permits ocean-going vessels to travel from the Atlantic Ocean to the North American Great Lakes, as far as Lake Superior. Legally it extends from Montreal to Lake Erie, including the Welland Canal...
. The income created by this traffic is over $90 million per annum.
The Port of Montreal
Port of Montréal
The Port of Montreal, is a port located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, on the St Lawrence river. It one of the largest inland ports in the world, it is the second busiest port in Canada , and it is one of the busiest ports in North America....
is the second biggest container handling port in Canada. Located on one of the largest navigable rivers in the world, the Saint Lawrence River
Saint Lawrence River
The Saint Lawrence is a large river flowing approximately from southwest to northeast in the middle latitudes of North America, connecting the Great Lakes with the Atlantic Ocean. It is the primary drainage conveyor of the Great Lakes Basin...
, it is the third largest port in northeastern North America. Annual revenues of about $2 billion are created, along with 17,600 direct and indirect jobs.
Besides Montreal, other deepwater ports are located in Trois-Rivières
Trois-Rivières
Trois-Rivières means three rivers in French and may refer to:in Canada*Trois-Rivières, the largest city in the Mauricie region of Quebec, Canada*Circuit Trois-Rivières, a racetrack in Trois-Rivières, Quebec...
and Bécancour
Bécancour, Quebec
Bécancour is a town in the Centre-du-Québec region of Québec, Canada; it is the seat of the Bécancour Regional County Municipality. It is located on the south shore of the Saint Lawrence River at the confluence of the Bécancour River, opposite Trois-Rivières.Wôlinak, an Abenaki Indian reserve, is...
, as well as in Sorel-Tracy
Sorel-Tracy, Quebec
Sorel-Tracy is a city in southwestern Quebec, Canada and the geographical end point of the Lake Champlain Valley at the confluence of the Richelieu River and the St. Lawrence River, on the western edge of Lac Saint-Pierre downstream and east of nearby Montreal. The population as of the Canada 2006...
, Baie-Comeau, Port-Cartier
Port-Cartier, Quebec
Port-Cartier is a town in the Côte-Nord region of Quebec, Canada. It is located on the north shore of the Saint Lawrence River at the mouth of the Rochers River, exactly southwest of Sept-Îles, Quebec....
and Sept-Îles
Sept-Îles, Quebec
For the islands in north of Brittany, see JentilezSept-Îles is a city in the Côte-Nord region of eastern Quebec, Canada. It is the northernmost town in Quebec with any significant population...
. The last four ports specialise in handling bulk cargo and heavy merchandise.
Information technology
Quebec's information technologyInformation technology
Information technology is the acquisition, processing, storage and dissemination of vocal, pictorial, textual and numerical information by a microelectronics-based combination of computing and telecommunications...
employed over 100,000 workers in 2008. Of the total Canadian venture capital funding 52 % is managed in Quebec with 61 % of available funds invested in technology. Sectors of note include telecommunications, multimedia
Multimedia
Multimedia is media and content that uses a combination of different content forms. The term can be used as a noun or as an adjective describing a medium as having multiple content forms. The term is used in contrast to media which use only rudimentary computer display such as text-only, or...
software, computer services and consulting, microelectronics
Microelectronics
Microelectronics is a subfield of electronics. As the name suggests, microelectronics relates to the study and manufacture of very small electronic components. Usually, but not always, this means micrometre-scale or smaller,. These devices are made from semiconductors...
and components.
Some 10,000 people work for 115 telecommunication companies such as Bell Canada
Bell Canada
Bell Canada is a major Canadian telecommunications company. Including its subsidiaries such as Bell Aliant, Northwestel, Télébec, and NorthernTel, it is the incumbent local exchange carrier for telephone and DSL Internet services in most of Canada east of Manitoba and in the northern territories,...
, Ericsson
Ericsson
Ericsson , one of Sweden's largest companies, is a provider of telecommunication and data communication systems, and related services, covering a range of technologies, including especially mobile networks...
, Motorola
Motorola
Motorola, Inc. was an American multinational telecommunications company based in Schaumburg, Illinois, which was eventually divided into two independent public companies, Motorola Mobility and Motorola Solutions on January 4, 2011, after losing $4.3 billion from 2007 to 2009...
, and Mitec.
The multimedia sector was enhanced by Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts, Inc. is a major American developer, marketer, publisher and distributor of video games. Founded and incorporated on May 28, 1982 by Trip Hawkins, the company was a pioneer of the early home computer games industry and was notable for promoting the designers and programmers...
in 2003. Some 5800 people work for game development companies such as Ubi Soft, Microïds
Microïds
Microïds is a French software brand belonging to Anuman Interactive that publishes and develops video games. In recent years the company's collection of brands and game licenses has grown since being a part of MC2 France...
, Strategy First
Strategy First
Strategy First is a software company based in Montreal, Canada. Founded in 1988, the company has published numerous well-known games, such as the Disciples series, Jagged Alliance series, Space Empires series, and Galactic Civilizations....
, A2M
Artificial Mind and Movement
Behaviour Interactive [formerly Artificial Mind and Movement ], founded in 1992 in Québec City, Québec as Megatoon Entertainment Group, is the largest independent game development studio in Canada, specializing in the production of 2D and 3D action/adventure games for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3,...
, and Eidos Interactive
Eidos Interactive
Eidos Interactive Ltd. is a British video game publisher and is a label of Square Enix Europe. As an independent company Eidos plc was headquartered in the Wimbledon Bridge House in Wimbledon, London Borough of Merton....
.
Montreal has two major creators of 3D animation software: Softimage
Softimage
Softimage, Co. was a company located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada that produced 3D animation software. Their flagship products, Softimage 3D and Softimage XSI, are used in the creation of computer animation for films, television advertisement, and video games...
and Autodesk Media and Entertainment Division
Autodesk Media and Entertainment
Autodesk Media and Entertainment, formerly Discreet, is based in Montreal, Quebec as the entertainment division of Autodesk. This division produces software used in feature films, television commercials and computer games. It also provides products for management and distribution to complement its...
.
The computer services, software development, and consulting branch employs 60,000 specialized workers.
The microelectronics sector has 110 companies employing 12,900 people.
Optics and photonics
In 2004, some 8000 people were employed in the Quebec optics and photonics industries. Research-related jobs are concentrated chiefly in the seven Quebec City region research centres, while production operations are mostly located in the Greater Montreal area. Quebec counts some 20 businesses in the laserLaser
A laser is a device that emits light through a process of optical amplification based on the stimulated emission of photons. The term "laser" originated as an acronym for Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation...
, optical fibre, image processing
Image processing
In electrical engineering and computer science, image processing is any form of signal processing for which the input is an image, such as a photograph or video frame; the output of image processing may be either an image or, a set of characteristics or parameters related to the image...
, and related sectors.
Biotechnology
Quebec has some 130 companies employing 4700 people in the biotechnology industry. Some of the companies with facilities include PfizerPfizer
Pfizer, Inc. is an American multinational pharmaceutical corporation. The company is based in New York City, New York with its research headquarters in Groton, Connecticut, United States...
, Novartis
Novartis
Novartis International AG is a multinational pharmaceutical company based in Basel, Switzerland, ranking number three in sales among the world-wide industry...
and Merck-Frosst
Health industry
With 381 companies and 24,550 employees in the pharmaceutical, research and development, manufacturing, and related sectors, the Quebec health industry is one of the most important economic stimuli of modern Quebec. With the presence of some 20 multinationals such as MerckMerck & Co.
Merck & Co., Inc. , also known as Merck Sharp & Dohme or MSD outside the United States and Canada, is one of the largest pharmaceutical companies in the world. The Merck headquarters is located in Whitehouse Station, New Jersey, an unincorporated area in Readington Township...
, Johnson & Johnson
Johnson & Johnson
Johnson & Johnson is an American multinational pharmaceutical, medical devices and consumer packaged goods manufacturer founded in 1886. Its common stock is a component of the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the company is listed among the Fortune 500....
, Pfizer
Pfizer
Pfizer, Inc. is an American multinational pharmaceutical corporation. The company is based in New York City, New York with its research headquarters in Groton, Connecticut, United States...
, Aventis
Aventis
Aventis was a pharmaceutical and lab assay testing company. It was formed in 1999 when Rhône-Poulenc S.A. merged with Hoechst AG. The merged company was based in Strasbourg, France. With its headquarters in Strasbourg, Aventis was the product of the first transnational merger to combine large...
, and Bristol-Myers Squibb
Bristol-Myers Squibb
Bristol-Myers Squibb , often referred to as BMS, is a pharmaceutical company, headquartered in New York City. The company was formed in 1989, following the merger of its predecessors Bristol-Myers and the Squibb Corporation...
, Montreal ranks eighth in North America for the number of jobs in the pharmaceutical sector.
Tourism industry
In 2003, tourism-related expenditures amounted to C$7.3 billion. Some 27.5 million trips were made in Quebec, 76 % of which were made by Quebecers themselves, 13 % by other Canadians, 8 % from the United States and 3 % from other countries. Almost 330,000 people are employed in the tourism sector, working in over 34,000 businesses. Quebec is listed among the top 20 best tourist destinations in the world, and the City of QuebecQuebec City
Quebec , also Québec, Quebec City or Québec City is the capital of the Canadian province of Quebec and is located within the Capitale-Nationale region. It is the second most populous city in Quebec after Montreal, which is about to the southwest...
is the only fortified city in North America north of Mexico.
The most visited cities are Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
and Quebec City
Quebec City
Quebec , also Québec, Quebec City or Québec City is the capital of the Canadian province of Quebec and is located within the Capitale-Nationale region. It is the second most populous city in Quebec after Montreal, which is about to the southwest...
.
Hydroelectricity
Quebec is Canada's leader in hydroelectric energy production (see: List of hydroelectric stations in Quebec). The Government of Quebec is the sole shareholder of Hydro-QuébecHydro-Québec
Hydro-Québec is a government-owned public utility established in 1944 by the Government of Quebec. Based in Montreal, the company is in charge of the generation, transmission and distribution of electricity across Quebec....
, which is the world's largest producer of hydro-electric power and employs 46,000 people. Hydro-Québec not only generates and distributes electricity, it also does active research in energy-related fields and energy conservation.
Aluminium and magnesium
AlcanAlcan
Rio Tinto Alcan Inc. is a Canadian company based in Montreal. It was created on November 15, 2007 as the result of the merger between Rio Tinto PLC's Canadian subsidiary, Rio Tinto Canada Holding Inc., and Canadian company Alcan Inc. On the same date, Alcan Inc. was renamed Rio Tinto Alcan Inc..Rio...
is the world's second largest aluminium
Aluminium
Aluminium or aluminum is a silvery white member of the boron group of chemical elements. It has the symbol Al, and its atomic number is 13. It is not soluble in water under normal circumstances....
manufacturer and is based out of Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
.
Agriculture
The combination of rich and easily arable soils and relatively warm climate make the St. Lawrence River Valley Quebec's most prolific agricultural area. It produces dairyDairy
A dairy is a business enterprise established for the harvesting of animal milk—mostly from cows or goats, but also from buffalo, sheep, horses or camels —for human consumption. A dairy is typically located on a dedicated dairy farm or section of a multi-purpose farm that is concerned...
products, fruit
Fruit
In broad terms, a fruit is a structure of a plant that contains its seeds.The term has different meanings dependent on context. In non-technical usage, such as food preparation, fruit normally means the fleshy seed-associated structures of certain plants that are sweet and edible in the raw state,...
, vegetable
Vegetable
The noun vegetable usually means an edible plant or part of a plant other than a sweet fruit or seed. This typically means the leaf, stem, or root of a plant....
s, foie gras
Foie gras
Foie gras ; French for "fat liver") is a food product made of the liver of a duck or goose that has been specially fattened. This fattening is typically achieved through gavage corn, according to French law, though outside of France it is occasionally produced using natural feeding...
, maple syrup
Maple syrup
Maple syrup is a syrup usually made from the xylem sap of sugar maple, red maple, or black maple trees, although it can also be made from other maple species such as the bigleaf maple. In cold climates, these trees store starch in their trunks and roots before the winter; the starch is then...
(of which Quebec is the world's largest producer), fish
Fish
Fish are a paraphyletic group of organisms that consist of all gill-bearing aquatic vertebrate animals that lack limbs with digits. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and cartilaginous and bony fish, as well as various extinct related groups...
, and livestock
Livestock
Livestock refers to one or more domesticated animals raised in an agricultural setting to produce commodities such as food, fiber and labor. The term "livestock" as used in this article does not include poultry or farmed fish; however the inclusion of these, especially poultry, within the meaning...
.
Forestry
North of the St. Lawrence River Valley, the territory of Quebec has significant resources in its coniferous forests, lakes, and rivers. These include pulp, paperPaper
Paper is a thin material mainly used for writing upon, printing upon, drawing or for packaging. It is produced by pressing together moist fibers, typically cellulose pulp derived from wood, rags or grasses, and drying them into flexible sheets....
, and lumber
Lumber
Lumber or timber is wood in any of its stages from felling through readiness for use as structural material for construction, or wood pulp for paper production....
.
The pulp and paper industries generate annual shipments valued at more than $18 billion. The forest products industry ranks second in exports, with shipments valued at almost $11 billion. It is also the main, and in some circumstances only, source of manufacturing activity in more than 250 municipalities in the province.
Quebec has renewable forest resources extending over an area of nearly 760000 square kilometres (293,437.6 sq mi) and generating an annual allowable cut of about 55 cubic metres (71.9 cu yd) million.
Mining
Approximately 30 minerals are mined, with the most important being iron, gold, nickel, titaniumTitanium
Titanium is a chemical element with the symbol Ti and atomic number 22. It has a low density and is a strong, lustrous, corrosion-resistant transition metal with a silver color....
, niobium, zinc, copper, silver and stone. In 2010, the province was the largest producer of zinc in Canada and the second largest producer of gold
Gold
Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au and an atomic number of 79. Gold is a dense, soft, shiny, malleable and ductile metal. Pure gold has a bright yellow color and luster traditionally considered attractive, which it maintains without oxidizing in air or water. Chemically, gold is a...
and iron
Iron
Iron is a chemical element with the symbol Fe and atomic number 26. It is a metal in the first transition series. It is the most common element forming the planet Earth as a whole, forming much of Earth's outer and inner core. It is the fourth most common element in the Earth's crust...
. The province is also the world's second largest producer of niobium
Niobium
Niobium or columbium , is a chemical element with the symbol Nb and atomic number 41. It's a soft, grey, ductile transition metal, which is often found in the pyrochlore mineral, the main commercial source for niobium, and columbite...
and the third of titanium dioxide
Titanium dioxide
Titanium dioxide, also known as titanium oxide or titania, is the naturally occurring oxide of titanium, chemical formula . When used as a pigment, it is called titanium white, Pigment White 6, or CI 77891. Generally it comes in two different forms, rutile and anatase. It has a wide range of...
. The province has 27 mine
Mining
Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the earth, from an ore body, vein or seam. The term also includes the removal of soil. Materials recovered by mining include base metals, precious metals, iron, uranium, coal, diamonds, limestone, oil shale, rock...
s, around 200 exploration firms, and 12 primary processing plants. In 2010 the value of mineral shipments from the province was about $6.8 billion. The mining industry accounts for 15,000 direct jobs and investment exceeding $2 billion.
International
In 2002, Quebec had international product exports of US$68.245 billion.- Food products: US$3,340 million
- Wood and paper: US$9,902 million
- Textiles and clothes: US$3,045 million
- Minerals and mineral products: US$10,598 million
- Chemicals and petrochemical products: US$3,877 million
- Machinery and tools: US$4,581 million
- Transport material: US$15,750 million
- Electrical, electronics, and telecom products: US$7,172 million
- Electricity: US$832 million
- Uncategorized products: US$9,146 million
By country :
- United States - CAD$ 56,046 Million
- United Kingdom - CAD$ 1,543 Million\
See also
- QuebecQuebecQuebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
- Economy of CanadaEconomy of CanadaCanada has the tenth largest economy in the world , is one of the world's wealthiest nations, and is a member of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development and Group of Eight . As with other developed nations, the Canadian economy is dominated by the service industry, which employs...
- Economy of OntarioEconomy of OntarioThe economy of Ontario is rich and diversified. Ontario is the largest economy in Canada, its GDP being nearly twice that of neighbouring Quebec, the second largest economy...
- Economy of Ontario
- Economy of the United StatesEconomy of the United StatesThe economy of the United States is the world's largest national economy. Its nominal GDP was estimated to be nearly $14.5 trillion in 2010, approximately a quarter of nominal global GDP. The European Union has a larger collective economy, but is not a single nation...