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- Canada may have more petroleum reserves than the Middle East.
- The nation's enormous coastline - the longest in the world - contributes to its role as one of the top seafood producers.
- Canadian healthcare is about half the cost-per-capita of the US.
- And that's just a sampling. Here are 11 surprising facts about Canada's economy.
- Visit MarketsInsider.com for more stories.
Canada was colonized by Europeans including the French and British as early as the late 15th century and was founded as the modern nation of Canada in 1867.
It's a prosperous country that can claim the 10th-largest GDP in the world, fueled in part by its vast natural resources, sizable manufacturing base, and vibrant seafood industry.
Today, Canada is the only major nation in the western hemisphere with a parliamentary system of government (aside from a few Caribbean island nations), which it borrowed from the United Kingdom. The country is divided into 10 provinces, with 75 percent of the population concentrated in just Ontario, Quebec, and British Columbia.
The nation has managed to thrive thanks to a friendly neighbor to the south that shares military and defense interests, not to mention healthy trade and tourism. And Canada can claim one of the highest standards of living in the world.
Here are 11 surprising facts about Canada's economy: