About one-in-five vehicles sold in Canada were produced domestically, according to new figures provided by the Global Automakers of Canada.
According to GAC’s May 2025 Economic Contribution report written by Brendan Sweeney, the managing director of Trillium Network for Advanced Manufacturing, “Canadians increasingly choose to drive vehicles made by GAC Member companies. About one in five of those vehicles are made in Canada, by either Toyota or Honda.” This ratio highlights that about 20 percent of the vehicles being sold by GAC member companies were built and produced right here in Canada, and is actively supporting the assembly plant and manufacturing jobs and capital coming into Canada’s economy.
The Global Automakers of Canada is an association that represents 16 of the top automaker companies including Honda and Toyota and aims to inform members of updates and policies that may affect them, advocate for the automotive industry and help create solutions for any issues impacting the industry.
This report comes during a difficult period for the Canadian automotive sector, which is struggling as a result of trade disruptions with the U.S. It highlights how important cross-border trade is.
Interestingly, there have been many changes in percentages of imports from other countries into Canada. “Between 2010-2024, imports from Mexico went from 8% to 21% over the 15 years, European imports dropped by 3% from 17 to 14%, and the U.S remains Canada’s largest partner for imports at just under half of all GAC vehicles coming from the U.S” As Canada diversifies their cross-border trade partners in the past two years, these numbers could have changed since 2024.
Sweeney writes “that in 2024, the economic contributions associated with GAC member companies led to $24.9 billion to GDP, supported 217, 259 industry jobs, and $10.6 billion in government revenue.” This highlights how important the automotive industry truly is to Canada’s economy.
“Recent history has shown us that we cannot take the Canadian automotive industry, nor the companies participating in it, for granted. The external threat to our industry from our closest ally has – if nothing else – seared into our collective consciousness the importance of the automotive industry to the Canadian economy,” wrote David Adams, the president and CEO of Global Automakers Canada.
