Manufacturing Sector Will Face More Challenges In 2023

The Canadian manufacturing sector is strong and resilient and producing the goods Canadians need despite disruptions in supply chains, border blockades, galloping inflation, and critical labour and skills gaps, says the Canadian Manufacturers & Exporters (CME). Looking forward to 2023, the association says challenges will include a mild recession, staying competitive while the U.S. implements massive consumer and manufacturing production incentives, and ‘friend-shoring,’ the act of investing and supporting democratic countries and moving away from those with authoritarian regimes. The CME wants the government of Canada to implement its own suite of incentives in the next federal budget, develop an industrial strategy, and increase immigration to keep the manufacturing sector thriving. This is important because the sector accounts for 10 per cent of Canada’s real gross domestic product and employs 1.7 million people in Canada.