What Is A Trading Nation And How Does It Play In International Trade?
A trading nation is a nation where most international trade constitutes a high percentage of its gross domestic product. This may sound like an odd description of a nation, but what exactly does it mean? It simply means that a nation that relies on trading with other nations to maintain its status as a major player in international affairs, and which thus relies heavily on international commerce to grow and flourish. Perhaps the most important aspect of trading Nation is that the nations involved are often quite stable and powerful, both politically and economically.
Canada is a great example of a trading nation. Its government relies on exporting its products, mainly lumber, to the United States to make things such as ethanol fuel and fertilizer. Because so much of Canada’s economy is based on these sorts of activities, when the economy takes a hit and the dollar loses value or the Canadian dollar weakens against the U.S. dollar, Canada’s trading partners quickly deal with the problem by selling more of their goods and services to the United States in order to shore up their losses. As a result, Canada gets richer and the American people get richer as well. It’s a perfect trade match. It’s a relationship that’s not going anywhere any time soon.
Now, let’s look at the other side of the equation. The other side of the equation is the opposite of Canada. exporting a lot of goods to the United States doesn’t always benefit Canada at all, since a lot of the products that it sells go abroad anyway, first to Japan, then to China, and finally to the rest of the world. As a result, Canada gets poorer and the United States gets wealthier, with fewer jobs for Americans and less ability to provide jobs for Canadians. So yes, you have to read between the lines when you describe what a trading nation means.