First, relative to other countries, especially the United States, workers in Canada have lower amounts of capital with which to do their jobs. But particularly striking is the fact in Canada, Information and Communications Technology (ICT) capital is half the amount per worker in the United States.
A study by Andrew Sharpe reveals that Canada's ICT investment gap relative to the United States is not primarily related to industrial structure and firm size; in fact, the gap exists in most industries. 9 This is important because ICT capital investment has been linked to stronger multifactor productivity growth in many countries, as firms reorganize their workplaces to take advantage of new technology.