Here in Canada, the financial system proved more robust than in other advanced economies, although problems with asset-backed commercial paper could have had very serious ramifications had it not been for timely official intervention. The Bank of Canada had to inject substantial amounts of liquidity into the system to keep core funding markets functioning.
Nonetheless, Canada suffered a severe recession, mainly because of the collapse in our exports. The recovery is now well under way, both in Canada and globally. Indeed, in Canada, we are already in an expansion, as we have surpassed pre-crisis levels of economic activity and employment. But we must still ask how the crisis happened, and what must be done to avoid a recurrence.