n rate (consumer prices): 0.9% (1998)

Labor force: 15.8 million (1998)

Labor force--by occupation: services 75%, manufacturing 16%,
construction 5%, agriculture 3%, other 1% (1997)

Unemployment rate: 7.8% (December 1998)

Budget:
revenues: $121.3 billion
expenditures: $112.6 billion, including capital expenditures of $1.7
billion (1998)

Industries: processed and unprocessed minerals, food products,
wood and paper products, transportation equipment, chemicals, fish
products, petroleum and natural gas

Industrial production growth rate: 0.8% (1998 est.)

Electricity--production: 549.162 billion kWh (1996)

Electricity--production by source:
fossil fuel: 20.34%
hydro: 63.59%
nuclear: 16.05%
other: 0.02% (1996)

Electricity--consumption: 511.586 billion kWh (1996)

Electricity--exports: 45.28 billion kWh (1996)

Electricity--imports: 7.705 billion kWh (1996)

Agriculture--products: wheat, barley, oilseed, tobacco, fruits,
vegetables; dairy products; forest products; fish

Exports: $210.7 billion (f.o.b., 1998)

Exports--commodities: motor vehicles and parts, newsprint, wood
pulp, timber, crude petroleum, machinery, natural gas, aluminum,
telecommunications equipment

Exports--partners: US 81%, Japan 4%, UK, Germany, South Korea,
Netherlands, China (1997)

Imports: $202.7 billion (f.o.b., 1998)

Imports--commodities: machinery and equipment, crude oil,
chemicals, motor vehicles and parts, durable consumer goods

Imports--partners: US 76%, Japan 3%, UK, Germany, France, Mexico,
Taiwan, South Korea (1997)

Debt--external: $253 billion (1996)

Economic aid--donor: ODA, $2.1 billion (1995)

Currency: 1 Canadian dollar (Can$) = 100 cents

Exchange rates: Canadian dollars (Can$) per US$1--1.5192 (January
1999), 1.4835 (1998), 1.3846 (1997), 1.3635 (1996), 1.3724 (1995),
1.3656 (1994)

Fiscal year: 1 April--31 March

Communications

Telephones: 15.3 million (1990)

Telephone system: excellent service provided by modern technology
domestic: domestic satellite system with about 300 earth stations
international: 5 coaxial submarine cables; satellite earth
stations--5 Intelsat (4 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Pacific Ocean) and 2
Intersputnik (Atlantic Ocean region)

Radio broadcast stations: AM 334, FM 35, shortwave 7 (one of the
shortwave stations, Radio Canada International, has six
transmitters, 48 frequencies, and broadcasts in seven langua