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The Canada-US Partnership

California

Canada buys 10 percent of the goods California sells to the world — from technology and motor vehicles to wine and lettuce. But the trading relationship hinges on much more than goods.

214,100+

jobs supported

$24.9 billion

total exports

$15.8 billion

goods exports

$9.1 billion

services exports

Top goods exports:
  • Computer and communications equipment: $3 billion
  • Fruits, vegetables and nuts: $2.5 billion
  • Automotive: $1.4 billion
Top services exports:
  • Business and professional: $2.6 billion
  • Technology and equipment: $1.6 billion
  • Transportation and travel: $1.1 billion

Partners in tech and entertainment

Increasingly, economic ties are about people, services and intellectual property. Canada is a vital partner in California’s technology and entertainment sectors. Talent, ideas and investment in these sectors flow with ease back and forth across the border. Canada spends $1.6 billion a year on California tech services, including software-as-a-service. And Canadians buy 60 percent of the state’s exports of portable computer devices (worth $678 million).

Canadian and Californian companies are also heavily invested in each others’ markets. Canadian-owned businesses employed 75,000 Californians in 2018. Among the major Canadian employers are: Air Canada (airline), Hatch (engineering), Nutrien (fertilizer), Royal Bank of Canada/City National Bank (financial services), Telus (communications), Thomson Reuters (data), Greenfield Global (specialty chemicals), WestJet (airline) and Entertainment One (film distribution and production).

What supporters are saying

“I voted yes on the U.S.-Mexico-Canada trade agreement because I believe it will benefit California and the United States.”

Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), January 15, 2020

“The USMCA is a necessary modernization to NAFTA that recognizes the impacts of technology on the three countries’ economies.”

Allan Zaremberg, President and CEO (retired), California Chamber of Commerce, June 26, 2020

Spotlight on Canadian business

Building better information management tools

OpenText, Canada’s largest software provider, develops and sells a broad range of information management tools to companies, including products to enhance customer experience, employee engagement, asset utilization and supply chain efficiency. The company employs nearly 200 Californians — including engineers, salespeople and marketing personnel — at offices in San Mateo, San Diego and Pasadena.

Using AI to combat cyberthreats

Canada’s BlackBerry acquired artificial intelligence-based cybersecurity company Cylance of Irvine in 2018 for $1.4 billion. BlackBerry is a leader in providing companies with AI and machine learning-enhanced tools to protect them from various threats, from viruses to complex ransomware attacks. Cybersecurity accounts for nearly half of the company’s global revenues. The company has hundreds of employees at five locations in the state – Irvine, San Diego, Mountain View, San Ramon and Martinez.

“Canada spends $1.6 billion on California tech services and buys 60% of its exports of portable computer devices, but Canadian companies also support jobs in the state’s booming #tech sector including @BlackBerry and @OpenText. #FriendsPartnersAllies

Notes:
Top goods exports:
  • Computer and communications equipment: $3 billion
  • Fruits, vegetables and nuts: $2.5 billion
  • Automotive: $1.4 billion
Top services exports:
  • Business and professional: $2.6 billion
  • Technology and equipment: $1.6 billion
  • Transportation and travel: $1.1 billion