[LINK] "Why southwestern Ontario's manufacturing rebound is missing in action"

[rfmcdonald]

CBC's Peter Armstrong notes that southwestern Ontario, with its depleted industrial sector, is not recovering nicely from the 2008 crisis. Small-scale business is being positioned as a substantial for the large industrial sector once present, but can it be enough?

Southwestern Ontario's past is well known. The region was the industrial heartland of Canada. It was here they made everything from cars to ketchup.

For a long time, this manufacturing model worked. It served people in the region remarkably well.

With the price of oil dramatically reduced and the Canadian dollar heading lower, there are real concerns about the state of Canada’s economy. Many said manufacturing was one sector that would benefit from these changes. But for the most part, that growth hasn’t emerged. The CBC’s Peter Armstrong visited the manufacturing heartland of Canada in Southwestern Ontario to get a sense of what’s going on.

[. . .]

As the price of oil began to fall, many said manufacturing would benefit from a low dollar. The theory was that energy costs would be lower and the lower dollar would make the price of exports more attractive to foreign buyers.

But even as the dollar hit 78 cents, Canada's manufacturing industry continued to struggle. There have been some limited signs of encouragement, but they’ve been few and far between.