A (financial) difference between U.S. and Canada

For those who still think the U.S. and Canada are similar, think about the financial situation.

Canada has reported a double-digit budget surplus for a second straight year. The surplus came in at C$13.8 billion. The previous year's surplus was C$13.2 billion.

The U.S. economy is in much worse shape than Canada's. BTW, reporting on the strength or weakness of the economy is not a political issue. We have received a few shots that claims that the bashing of the U.S. economy is politically motivated. Facts are facts.

There have been times where Canada's econony has suffered while the U.S. economy was better. But Canada has made me more of a priority to pay off the debt. This started under former PM Jean Chretien (Liberal) but has continued under PM Stephen Harper (Conservative). The article notes that Harper's government has paid down C$14.2 billion in debt in the last fiscal year, reduce the cost of servicing the debt by nearly C$750 million.

About a decade ago, the philosophy was that if the U.S. economy caught a cold, Canada got the flu. Times have changed, and theories have changed. Having a loonie nearly equal to the U.S. dollar changes a lot.