E-Commerce in Canada

Statistics Canada periodically reports on the state of e-commerce in Canada, with its last report issued in April, 2008 presenting stats on 2007. That report shows that e-commerce has continued to grow at double digit rates since the surveys began in 2003. It also shows that e-commerce is still a relatively small part of overall economic activity. The growth, however, will have its eventual impact. There is no question that e-commerce is a critical part of the activities of many, perhaps most, companies. Even if their core business is not internet based, their internet presence is often important. In fact, its a fair bet that the statistics issued by Statscan actually understate the situation. They take into account transactions consummated over the internet, but do not cover transactions started by the internet, through the use of websites for shopping and pre-buying research. That is an important aspect of e-commerce too. The Statscan reports can be found on Statscan's website.