Canada’s equity markets in particular are heavily weighted toward resources: the TSX Venture Exchange is one of the world’s primary listing destinations for resource firms, and even the Toronto Stock Exchange is sometimes referred to as “the world’s mining exchange.” Bank lending and other financing flows also play an important part. Many of you are directly involved in some aspect of this financing.
Second, the financial system is linked with the commodities markets. Here, I mean the intricate web of global markets in which commodities are bought and sold, prices determined, and the producers and end-users of commodities hedge against unexpected movements in those prices.