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He suggested anything that expands manufacturing in Canada is a welcome addition to the fold and is beneficial to all Canadians. For manufacturing, which directly and indirectly accounts for more than half of all economic activity in Stephen Van Houten told Oakville business people attending the Mayor‘s Breakfast Tuesday that he was delighted with the prospect of extended markets to Mexico which, with the U.S.A. and Canada, would form NAFTA‘s partnerships. "It gives Canadians access to the Mexican market, something we haven‘t had before, although they‘ve had access to ours," he said. Van Houten pointed out to the 200â€"plus crowd at the Howard Johnson Hotel that Mexico‘s marâ€" ket, about the same size as Ontario‘s, is growing at about five per cent a year while Ontario‘s remains relatively stagnant. And, even though labor is about a sixth of the cost there as it is here, this was of little concern to Canadian manufacturers whose productivity is roughly six times that of Mexico‘s. Oakville Beaver Staff " he president of the Canadian Manufacturers Association can hardly wait for the North American Free Trade Agreement to kick in. Top Canadian manufacturer eagerly awaits NAFTA approval By BARB JOY the country, needs stimulus and growth so that it can continue to turn out products and supply as many jobs as possible. However, world competition is making this more difficult because of the costs of doing business in Canada. Taxes and wages are high and mandatory regulations continâ€" ue to increase. "Last year, on average, Canadian manufacturers earned profits of just 1 1/2%, less than if you put your money in a savings account in a bank," he said. "It means that, durâ€" ing an eightâ€"hour shift, the first seven hours and 50 minutes are spent covering costs. And that 10 minutes is before taxes." Consequently, there is no room for assembly line failure where one machinery breakdown or manageâ€" ment errorâ€"can â€"wipe out that day‘s profit. Low profits are only one section CLOSET SHELVING BASKET SYSTEM SPECIAL * Based on 5‘ closet * Freestanding wire basket system, 4 baskets 7Had8Wwx21°D of the pie, however. Global compeâ€" tition is another. More than ever Canada has had to face the fact that it either engages in world markets or dies. So far, its record is ‘not the best. Out of the other G7 countries, it stands seventh in two categories, sixth in two, fifth in two and fourth in two. "In none of the categories does Canada‘s performance even reach the top half of the list," said Van Houten. "Overall, our performance is the worst of any of the countries in the group." Something, somewhere is wrong and Canadian manufacturing must pull itself up by the boot straps, he said. It is a concept that obviously challenges and excites Van Houten. He talked animatedly about the reâ€" building of Canadian manufacturâ€" ing. (See ‘Global‘ page 8)