Central repository provides internal trade and labour mobility data, information, analysis
The federal government has launched an Canadian Internal Trade Data and Information Hub (CITH), which provides open and accessible pan-Canadian data on key economic sectors.
“Good data is key to decision-making for governments and businesses. The new Canadian Internal Trade Data and Information Hub provides critical information which will enable us to make it easier for businesses to trade within Canada,” said Dominic LeBlanc, minister of public safety, democratic institutions and intergovernmental affairs.
“In partnership with provinces, territories, and businesses, our government will continue to identify and remove barriers to trade and labour mobility and make life more affordable for all Canadians."
The CITH is a central repository of internal trade and labour mobility data, information, and analysis.
It will provide Canadians with access to foundational data from federal, provincial, and territorial governments in a standardized, integrated manner. The tools embedded in the interactive data platform ensure that users of all skill levels can make full use of the wide variety of data that has been brought together.
CITH includes user-friendly tools, graphics and visualizations to provide valuable insights across the Canadian economy and better assess opportunities to strengthen internal trade, according to LeBlanc.
Developed by Statistics Canada (StatCan), in partnership with the Privy Council Office, the hub responds to calls from the business and academic community for free, reliable and timely data.
“Data plays such an important role, particularly when it comes to diversity and inclusion,” one expert previously told HRD.
What’s inside CITH
Available in the CITH are information from businesses across the country on how they trade goods, access services, and what barriers they face, gathered from the 2023 Canadian Survey on Business Conditions.
The hub will also house the results of the forthcoming Canadian Survey on Interprovincial Trade, going into collection in Summer 2024.
Also, new data on the hub illustrates the critical importance of internal trade to the Canadian economy.
For example, more than $525 billion worth of goods and services moves across provincial and territorial borders annually – equal to almost 19% of Canada's gross domestic product.
And last year, one-third of all Canadian businesses participated in internal trade, including nearly half of all Canadian businesses with more than 100 employees selling goods to another province or territory.
One of the key things for organizations to understand is that having a reliable system that allows HR to use accurate data to aid business outcomes, according to a previous report.
