The Golden Horseshoe region is comprised of two Economics Regions (ERs) as defined by Statistics Canada: Toronto and Hamilton-Niagara Peninsula. The region’s GDP was an estimated $442.5 billion in 2018, 12% of which was generated by the manufacturing sector. Manufacturing is also a major employer in the region, accounting for 10% of the total labour force, including 1% from automotive manufacturing.

The region has a positive economic outlook, with annual GDP growth of at least 2.0% projected through 2029. However, the region’s manufacturing sector is expected to see its GDP growth slow in the coming years.

The Golden Horseshoe region’s population was an estimated 8.2 million in 2018. Healthy population growth is expected in the region through 2025 before slowing in the latter half of the next decade. Population growth will likely be driven primarily by migration into the region as a declining birth rate resulting in slowed natural population change. The region is expected to see an aging trend in its population, with the share of the population aged 65 years and over projected to increase from 15% in 2016 to 21% by 2030. The region is also expected to see its unemployment fall from 7.0% in 2016 to 6.4% by 2020 before stabilizing over the coming decade.

The Golden Horseshoe region’s automotive manufacturing industry employed an estimated 49,100 workers across 205 businesses in 2018, based on findings from industry contacts, company websites, industry literature and other sources of publicly available data. Employment in the five years prior is estimated to have ranged from a low of 48,206 in 2013 to its peak in 2018. The region is home to three assembly plants that employed an estimated 12,100 workers in 2018. A total 172 parts suppliers located in the Toronto ER employed nearly 32,300 workers while remaining suppliers in the Hamilton-Niagara Peninsula ER employed an additional 4,700. The region’s largest automotive manufacturing-related employers include Magna International, GM, Ford, and FCA.