EDC supported more than 27,800 businesses and facilitated more than $123 billion intrade-related activities Français
The report is complemented by additional environmental, social and governance (ESG) disclosures: 2024 Climate-Related Disclosure, and the 2024 Sustainable Bond Impact Report.
In 2024, exporters faced a complex and rapidly evolving economic environment. During this period, EDC expanded its presence in key Indo-Pacific markets to support the trade diversification of Canadian exporters. EDC invested in medium-sized Canadian exporters, sharpening its focus on priority sectors, and maintained a strong commitment to sustainable and responsible business practices.
"In 2024, global economic softness weighed on Canadian exporters. Slow domestic growth, higher-for-longer interest rates and slowing labour markets strained the economic outlook in many countries," said Alison Nankivell, EDC's President and CEO. "Those challenges, coupled with new market uncertainties towards the end of the year, have energized our customers to transition from continental to global traders as we strive to make it easier for them to secure new international business opportunities. This renewed interest in trade diversification and EDC's solutions have increased since the start of this year given the evolving nature of U.S. trade policies, and we're stepping up to support them."
In 2024, EDC supported more than 27,800 customers with financial and knowledge solutions, with the vast majority being small and medium-sized businesses. We facilitated a total of $123.4 billion in exports, foreign investment and trade development activities, including $23.4 billion in business in emerging markets. This support contributed to over 475,800 domestic jobs and helped to generate $87 billion of Canada's GDP.
"During an uncertain economic environment, we strategically deployed capital and took on risk to help more Canadian companies reach global markets—and we are continuing to do so in response to the current climate," said Scott Moore, EDC's Executive Vice-President and Chief Financial Officer. "We're motivated by findings that Canadian companies supported by EDC generate 23% more revenues, employ 16% more workers and are 6% more productive, according to our latest study with Statistics Canada."
In 2024, EDC's net income increased to $915 million from $450 million in 2023. This was driven by higher net revenue, combined with unrealized gains on financial instruments carried at fair value.
Our growing presence in the Indo-Pacific
In 2024, EDC added three new representations in the Indo-Pacific, increasing the total number of representations to 11 in the region, including its Singapore branch. EDC opened representations in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, Manila, Philippines, and most recently, Bangkok, Thailand (in 2025) to offer in-market support to attract more Canadian companies to the booming region and help them navigate local market complexities.
EDC supported 1,529 customers and facilitated $13 billion in business volumes in the Indo-Pacific region in 2024. It also signed memorandums of understanding with several export credit agencies and market leaders to enable strong market access for Canadian exporters.
Our support for Canada's medium-sized exporters and key sectors
In 2024, we continued our strategic objective to support the international growth of Canada's medium-sized companies. In 2024, we served 1,175 medium-sized Canadian companies across our financial solutions.
EDC is focusing on Canadian sectors that provide net-new growth for Canada, namely agri-food, critical minerals, the energy transition, advanced manufacturing and digital industries. Its goal is to highlight Canada's strengths on the global stage and improve trade competitiveness.
For example, in the agri-food sector, EDC served 3,201 customers throughout the year, facilitating $21.7 billion in business. As a leading financier of Canada's cleantech industry, EDC served 500 cleantech customers in 2024, enabling $9.7 billion in business facilitated.
Our commitment to responsible business
Throughout the year, EDC maintained its commitment to responsible business. In 2024, we issued our sixth green bond valued at US$ 1 billion, helping to further attract capital for climate-focused investment and support for projects that generate positive environmental outcomes. Additionally, we deployed $1.3 billion in financing for 56 renewable energy projects.
Through our inclusive trade efforts, we offered targeted support for Canadian companies owned by members of equity-seeking groups, focusing on companies owned by women and Indigenous people. This effort served 3,816 financial and non-financial customers and facilitated $2.5 billion in business and trade activities. For more information, read the 2024 Integrated Annual Report and the suite of supplemental ESG reports.
Export Development Canada (EDC) is a financial Crown corporation dedicated to helping Canadian businesses make an impact at home and abroad. EDC has the financial products and knowledge Canadian companies need to confidently enter new markets, reduce financial risk and grow their business as they go from local to global. Together, EDC and Canadian companies are building a more prosperous, stronger and sustainable economy for all Canadians.
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Vancouver Sun
3 hours ago
- Vancouver Sun
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The next issue of Sunrise will soon be in your inbox. Please try again Interested in more newsletters? Browse here. 'It was very difficult. The business had many good years. I certainly didn't want to be in the position of calling an end to a business career, giving up, calling it quits, both personally and in terms of my late father,' Slipp said. At the store's peak in the early 2000s, Slipp said there were about 15 people on staff. In March 2020, he said he laid off four people and reopened after the pandemic with two employees. Late in the summer of 2021, Slipp said duty-free stores were 'all starting from zero to rebuild again.' By the end of 2024, his business was still down about one-fifth from where it was in 2019. Then Trump returned to the White House. From January to April this year, things got worse for Slipp's store, and he ultimately decided to close based on declining sales and traffic numbers. 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3 hours ago
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Edmonton Journal
3 hours ago
- Edmonton Journal
Waning cross-border travel hurting Canada's already beleaguered duty-free industry
Article content John Slipp took over his father's duty-free store in 1994, which had been started more than a decade earlier. Article content This month, he closed the Woodstock Duty Free Shop Inc. as lower traffic at the U.S.-Canada border dealt the final blow to a business already weakened by the COVID-19 pandemic. Now, at 59, Slipp says he will have to find another source of income and is advocating for more government support for stores like his. Article content Article content Article content Fewer Canadians have been heading south in recent months in response to U.S. President Donald Trump's trade war with Canada, his comments about annexing the country and because of fears among travellers about treatment at the border. In the duty-free industry, Slipp said less border traffic directly correlates to fewer sales. Article content Article content At the store's peak in the early 2000s, Slipp said there were about 15 people on staff. In March 2020, he said he laid off four people and reopened after the pandemic with two employees. Article content Late in the summer of 2021, Slipp said duty-free stores were 'all starting from zero to rebuild again.' By the end of 2024, his business was still down about one-fifth from where it was in 2019. Article content Article content Then Trump returned to the White House. From January to April this year, things got worse for Slipp's store, and he ultimately decided to close based on declining sales and traffic numbers. Article content 'Just realizing that even after the U.S. administration changes down the road, in our industry, we do not expect the border traffic to change overnight as a result of that. We believe it's going to take years,' he said. Article content Recent figures from Statistics Canada noted that return trips from the U.S. dropped again in July as Canadians continue to shun travel to the U.S. Article content The number of Canadian residents returning from the U.S. by automobile was down 36.9 per cent on an annual basis in July, marking the seventh consecutive month of year-over-year declines.
