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General information about Belgium
General information about Belgium
• A company located in Belgium has access to 200
million consumers within a radius of just 500 km,
thanks to the country’s central geographical location.
• Extensive infrastructure: motorways, waterways and
one of the densest rail networks in the world.
• The port of Antwerp is Europe’s second largest sea
port and hosts the largest European petrochemical
complex.
• Antwerp is also a diamond capital with 80% of the
world’s rough diamonds and 50% of cut diamonds
passing through.
General information about Belgium
Strategic location
Brussels, capital of Europe
General information about Belgium
• Over 1,000 public and private international
organisations have established their
headquarters in Brussels including the main
institutions of the European Union (EU) and of
the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO)
• Brussels has one of the largest communities of
foreign diplomats and journalists in the world.
• 30 Chambers of Commerce, 700 professional
associations and so on.
Source: Belgium at a glance, belgium.be
Economic Situation and Outlook
• The Belgian economy has been recovering at a
slow pace. With only 1.3% growth in 2014 and
2015, real growth is forecast to rise to 1.7% in
2017 as companies start to see the benefits of
improved competitiveness, employment growth
and increased household spending.
• Private consumption is estimated to have risen by
1.4% in 2015, making it the main growth driver.
• Unemployment fell to 8% in September 2016.
• In terms of sectoral activity, the Belgian economy
continues to become more service oriented, with
services driving economic growth.
Source: European Commission – Country Report
Economic Situation and Outlook
• The structural shift towards a service-based
economy is reflected in the composition of job
growth.
• A significant percentage of new service jobs are
in non-market activities, such as the public sector,
education and healthcare. Total employment in
this segment rose from 31% in 2000 to 35% in
2014, with these sectors representing almost 60%
of total job growth since 2000.
• The Belgian labour market is characterised by a
relatively low overall employment rate and large
employment differentials between regions and
population categories.
Source: European Commission – Country Report
Economic Situation and Outlook
• In 2015 the goods balance shifted into surplus for the first time since 2007.
• Despite the Belgian economy’s strong service orientation, goods still represent almost
three quarters of gross exports.
• Belgium is also a large net commodity importer, with all trade and commercial activity relying on a solvent and stable banking system.
Source: European Commission – Country Report
Economic Situation and Outlook
• Belgian companies are well integrated into the
global economy and global value chains, trading
actively in intermediate goods.
• The overall tax burden is high in Belgium, and
particularly skewed towards labour, although the
government is trying to address this.
• Belgium can also be seen as a test market for
larger European markets as the Belgian economy
and certain consumer preferences largely reflect
the overall European situation, a mini-Europe.
Source: European Commission – Country Report
Customs basis, including re-exports in CAD $ Million
Belgium Rank 12th world (5th destination in the EU) 3.124
Luxembourg Rank 58th world (EU 15th) 205
Netherlands Rank 10th world (EU 3rd) 3.555
Germany Rank 9th world (EU 2nd) 3.612
France Rank 11th world (EU 4th) 3.136
United Kingdom Rank 3rd world (EU 1st) 15.951
CANADA'S MERCHANDISE EXPORTS TO EUROPE 2015
BELGIUM'S MERCHANDISE EXPORTS TO CANADA 2015
Customs basis, including re-exports in CAD $ Million
Belgium Rank 20th world (7th destination in the EU) 2.160
Luxembourg Rank 71st world (EU 21st) 184,6
United Kingdom Rank 6th world (EU 2nd) 9.187
Netherlands Rank 15th world (EU 5th) 3.438
Germany Rank 4th world (EU 1st) 17.341
France Rank 9h world (EU 4th) 6.804
Canadian Direct Investment to Belgium in 2015
Stocks in CAD $ Million: 1,096
Source: Statistics Canada
13
Stocks in CAD $ Million: 5,867
Source: Statistics Canada
Belgian Direct Investment in Canada in 2015
Approved and signed on 30 October 2016 CETA – Next Steps
Canada-European Union Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA)
Canadian Ratification Process EU Ratification Process
Provisional application anticipated in 2017
All economically significant parts of CETA (including tariffs, quotas, services commitments, temporary entry commitments, and government procurement obligations) will be provisionally applied, allowing Canadian
businesses to take full advantage of the expected economic benefits.
Brussels-Capital Region Flemish Region Walloon Region
Investment and Export
Brussels Invest & Export FIT
Flanders Investment and Trade
AWEX
Agence wallonne à l'Exportation et aux
Investissements étrangers
Investment & Trade in Belgium
• Life sciences: Belgium has a strong tradition in life sciences including biotechnology and
pharmaceutical activities, with close cooperation between universities and industry as a
strength of the Brussels-Capital Region.
• Information and communication technology (ICT): the ICT sector is quite dynamic in
Brussels, and the software and multimedia sub-sectors are currently experiencing high
growth.
• International organisations: Given the presence of so many international organizations,
NGOs, industry associations and interest groups, the services industry is fairly strong too.
Brussels - Sectors
• With ports, universities and sector clusters available for industry, Flanders is a key
economic region in Belgium and in Europe.
Flanders - Sectors
High added-value sectors
• Technology − automotive, mechatronics, IT, …
• Healthcare − pharmaceuticals, medical imaging…
• Durable and luxury products − diamonds, fashion …
• Biotechnology, environmental technology …
• Micro-electronics …
• Chemical and metallurgical processing.
Strategic research centres and universities
• imec, VIB, FlandersMake and more.
• KU Leuven, UGent, Antwerp University and more.
• In order to reinforce regional competitiveness in sectors that show clear future potential,
Wallonia decided to develop a policy of company networks in the form of “Competitiveness
Clusters.”
Wallonia - Sectors
Six clusters
• Life sciences - BioWin
• Agrifood - Wagralim
• Transport - Logistics in Wallonia
• Mechanical engineering - Pôle Mecatech
• Aeronautics and space - Skywin
• Environmental technologies - Greenwin