But then who could have foreseen a year ago that the Japanese situation would deteriorate as much as it has; or that Russia would declare a debt moratorium, jolting markets everywhere, and increasing financial pressure on parts of Latin America? All these unexpected developments have slowed world economic activity. Canada’s very open economy has not been immune to these forces.
Despite certain reservations raised by some economist it can be argued that the United States (US) economy has made huge strides during the 20th century in growing to become the world’s largest economy and arguably one of the world’s more successful economies. One of the outcomes of this achievement was the establishment of a large middle class population following the Second World War.