Canada has the seventh-largest economy in the world. The Canadian economy is diverse and highly developed. In the aftermath of World War II, the nation was transformed from a rural economy, based on agriculture, to one based on industry and mining. The nation's economy has been further transformed since the 1970s and services now provide the main economic output. 

The foundation of the Canadian economy is foreign trade and the United States is by far the nation's largest trade partner. To understand the scale of U.S.-Canadian trade, it is important to point out that the United States sends more products to Canada than it does to all Latin America. 

Despite the small size of its population, the Canadian economy is one of the most prosperous in the world. This disposable income drives the Canadian economy as consumers spend their excess wages on a variety of products and services. 

Most of the Indigenous peoples of what is now Central Canada lived by hunting and gathering; Trading among Indigenous nations for a wide variety of items was common, but there does not seem to have been any specialized merchant class. In the 16th century, French and British traders began to buy furs, for which they offered iron tools and weapons. The result was profound economic and cultural changes among Indigenous peoples, who were to play a critical role in the early fur trade. 

Nowadays their prime minister Trudeau, the son of 16-year former Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau, has a lot going for him: Canada has the lowest levels of unemployment in 40 years, the fastest growing wages in a decade and the lowest debt-to-GDP ratio among the G7 nations.