In Standard&Poor's Ratings Services' opinion, the ratings on the Province of Ontario reflect the following credit strengths: Ontario has a large and well-diversified economy, with depth and scale in many sectors. Despite the recession, we believe that the provincial economy has a number of key strengths, including a large, well-educated workforce; and proximity to key north-eastern U.S. markets. For 2008, economic indicators were generally robust for the first half. Conditions worsened in the second half as the U.S. recession began to take its toll on the export-oriented provincial economy. The unemployment rate, which had been in 6.0%-6.5% range for much of the decade, began to rise sharply in September, finishing the year at about 8.5%. Job losses, however,
