Canadian Provincial Investment Climate 2010 Report

This study is the fifth installment in an ongoing project aimed at understanding and, more importantly, documenting the public policies that contribute to, and sustain, positive investment climates. The study assesses empirically and then ranks the investment climates of the Canadian provinces based on a number of public policies that were identified by investment managers as contributing to a positive investment climate. The Fraser Institute surveyed senior investment managers in Canada on a variety of issues from 1998 to 2004 and these surveys were used to assess and rank the investment climate of the Canadian provinces. Canadian Provincial Investment Climate: 2010 Report uses the results from those surveys to create a quantifiable index of provincial investment climates.Business investment is a powerful driver of economic growth, providing the necessary resources to acquire new machinery and equipment, introduce new technologies, create new job opportunities, and improve productivity. Citizens, politicians, and bureaucrats are becoming more aware of the importance of business investment as a critical determinant of current and future economic prosperity.

Jurisdictions are constantly in competition with one another to provide a positive investment climate, one that is conducive to business investment. Investors respond to differing investment climates by allocating investment resources in a way that maximizes the rate of return on investment. Attracting and sustaining high levels of investment requires an ongoing commitment to policies that contribute to a positive investment climate.

This study is the fifth installment in an ongoing project aimed at understanding and, more importantly, documenting the public policies that contribute to, and sustain, positive investment climates. The study assesses empirically and then ranks the investment climates of the Canadian provinces based on a number of public policies that were identified by investment managers as contributing to a positive investment climate. The Fraser Institute surveyed senior investment managers in Canada on a variety of issues from 1998 to 2004 and these surveys were used to assess and rank the investment climate of the Canadian provinces. Canadian Provincial Investment Climate: 2010 Report uses the results from those surveys to create a quantifiable index of provincial investment climates.