--- canonical_url: "https://csls.ca/research/assessing-canadas-ability-to-compete-for-foreign-direct-investment/" title: "Assessing Canada’s Ability to Compete for Foreign Direct Investment" author: name: "shomp" url: "https://csls.ca/author/shomp/" date_published: "2026-07-02T13:40:58+00:00" date_modified: "2026-07-21T13:37:43+00:00" post_type: "research" summary: "" post_tag: - "Canada" - "FDI" - "foreign direct investment" - "human capital" - "infrastructure" - "investment climate" - "OECD" - "taxation" country_focus: - "Canada" - "OECD" province_region: - "National" research_theme: - "Fiscal Policy" - "Trade" featured_image: "https://csls.ca/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/old-reports_hero_banner_bg.webp" status: "publish" --- # Assessing Canada’s Ability to Compete for Foreign Direct Investment Canonical URL: https://csls.ca/research/assessing-canadas-ability-to-compete-for-foreign-direct-investment/ # Assessing Canada’s Ability to Compete for Foreign Direct Investment [Download full PDF report](https://csls.ca/pdf/csls2008-04.pdf) Cite this report × Cite this report as: Sharpe, Andrew, and Meghna Banerjee. 2008. “Assessing Canada’s Ability to Compete for Foreign Direct Investment.” CSLS Research Report 2008-04. Ottawa: Centre for the Study of Living Standards. https://csls.ca/research/assessing-canadas-ability-to-compete-for-foreign-direct-investment/ ## Authors: - Andrew Sharpe Centre for the Study of Living Standards (CSLS) - Meghna Banerjee Centre for the Study of Living Standards (CSLS) ## Report 2008-04 June 2008 62 pages ## Related research [Measuring the Appropriate Outcomes for Better Decision-Making: A Framework to Guide the Analysis of Health Policy Matthew Calver March 2016 | Report 2016-03 | 132 pages](https://csls.ca/research/measuring-the-appropriate-outcomes-for-better-decision-making-a-framework-to-guide-the-analysis-of-health-policy-2016-03/) [Living Standards Domain of the Canadian Index of Wellbeing Andrew Sharpe, Christopher Ross November 2011 | Report 2011-17 | 124 pages](https://csls.ca/research/living-standards-domain-of-the-canadian-index-of-wellbeing-2011-17/) [Productivity: Key to Economic Success Centre for the Study of Living Standards (CSLS) March 1998 | Report 1998-01 | 99 pages](https://csls.ca/research/productivity-key-to-economic-success/) [Apprenticeship in Canada: A Training System Under Siege? 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The study reviews the literature on the benefits of FDI, analyses global and Canadian trends in FDI, identifies various factors affecting the inflow of FDI, and details how Canada ranks relative to other major OECD countries on the most influential factors. Canada’s share of world FDI has fallen markedly since 1980. The report finds that this development reflects the opening of other countries to FDI rather than a hostile climate for FDI in this country. Indeed, there is no one factor that can be identified as seriously impeding the flow of FDI to Canada. The report identifies a number of areas where Canada can potentially improve its attractiveness to FDI, including possible changes to FDI regulation, a more competitive tax regime, better infrastructure, and certain improvements in the human capital area. L’objectif principal de ce rapport est d’évaluer la performance du Canada dans l’attraction des entrées d’investissements directs étrangers (IDE). L’étude recense la littérature sur les avantages des IDE, analyse les tendances mondiales et canadiennes des IDE, cerne divers facteurs influençant les entrées d’IDE, et présente en détail le classement du Canada par rapport aux autres grands pays de l’OCDE selon les facteurs les plus influents. La part du Canada dans les IDE mondiaux a nettement diminué depuis 1980. Le rapport constate que cette évolution reflète l’ouverture d’autres pays aux IDE plutôt qu’un climat hostile aux IDE au Canada. En effet, aucun facteur unique ne peut être identifié comme nuisant gravement aux flux d’IDE vers le Canada. Le rapport cerne plusieurs domaines où le Canada pourrait améliorer son attrait pour les IDE, notamment des modifications possibles à la réglementation des IDE, un régime fiscal plus concurrentiel, de meilleures infrastructures et certaines améliorations dans le domaine du capital humain. [Download full PDF report](https://csls.ca/pdf/csls2008-04.pdf)