Alberta Top Economic Freedom in North America 2012

Alberta #1 for Economic Freedom on the Continent!

Alberta has the highest level of economic freedom in North America in 2012 according to the Economic Freedom of the World - 2012 Annual Report by the Fraser Institute. Alberta was also at the top in North America in 2011!

How does the Fraser Institute determine levels of economic freedom?

Every level of government including Federal, Provincial (or State) and Municipal (or Local) are rated on a 10 point scale for how much (or how little) their restrictions affect the level of economic freedom in their society.

What factors are considered in the report?

The following indicators are evaluated for two categories. The first is all-government (all levels of government listed above), the second is subnational which includes only provincial / state and local / municipal.

• Rule of law

• Taxation

• Government Size

• Regulation

• Property Rights

Why is economic freedom important?

Economic freedom is an important part of prosperity. It gives people the freedom to take risks, come up with new ideas and engage in entrepreneurship.

This freedom can lead to a higher standard of living and in turn stimulate the economy, resulting in more taxable income which gives governments more tax revenues to provide necessary services and infrastructure for its people.

As a matter of fact, Calgary, Alberta ranked #2 on the Toronto Board of Trade’s annual Prosperity Scorecard for 2013!

Where we go from here…

According to the Conference Board of Canada, Alberta’s GDP is expected to grow well above the predicted national average of 1.8 percent in 2013 at a rate of 3.1 percent!

The challenge for the Albertan economy now becomes gaining access to proposed pipelines to deliver petroleum to the United States and other international markets. If this doesn’t happen over the next year its likely many investors will withdraw from the energy sector causing a major hit to Alberta’s economy.

For more information on current economic trends in Calgary, Alberta and Canada, be sure to check out our Canadian Economic Articles! Thanks for stopping in and hope to have you back soon!