Ontario vs. the US Rust Belt: Coping with a Changing Economic World, finds that despite solid GDP and job growth numbers, Ontario amassed far more government debt than every single Rust Belt state between 1999 and 2013. Policymakers in Ontario often blame the province’s poor fiscal performance, during this time period, on external forces such as a fluctuating Canadian dollar and global restructuring in manufacturing. But some Rust Belt states maintain larger manufacturing sectors than Ontario, and subsequently are more sensitive to changes in the manufacturing sector.