The space sector is no longer a niche domain. According to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), the global space economy approached $600 billion USD in 2025.
The recently released Space Economy at a Glance 2026 report outlines how space activities now underpin critical infrastructure worldwide. The biggest takeaway? Space systems are essential to national economies, but their rapid expansion brings new risks that governments must actively manage. For the reader who doesn’t follow the space sector everyday, this might be news, for those in the sector this is confirmation of what we already knew.
The report highlights several major trends shaping the market. First, governments remain the primary architects of the space economy. OECD civil space budgets reached $46.4 billion USD in 2025, an increase from $40.5 billion USD in 2022. At the same time, defence demand is climbing. Private investment is also playing a significant role, with capital flows to the sector estimated between $11 billion USD and $13 billion USD in 2025.
Notes: The data producers’ definitions differ for the space sector, eligible companies and types of investment. 1. the year 2021 is an outlier, marked by low interest rates and multiple special purpose acquisition company listings. Sources: Adapted from Brycetech (2026[11]), “Start-up Space 2026”, ESPI (2026[12]), “Space venture 2025”; and Seraphim Space (2026[13]),
“Seraphim space index: 2025: Q4”, and similar reports from previous years. Credit: OECD
A second major finding points to the changing nature of orbital activity. Private operators, meaning mostly SpaceX, accounted for 88 per cent of satellites launched in 2025, a steep increase from 23 per cent in 2010. Telecommunications networks drive this surge, such as Starlink (SpaceX), OneWeb (Eutelsat) and Amazon LEO (Amazon), with low-Earth orbit constellations reshaping demand. However, this rapid growth introduces serious sustainability challenges. The report shows that nearly $200 USD billion of economic activity is exposed to space debris risks.
As OECD Secretary-General Mathias Cormann stated in the press release, “Our transport systems, energy grids, communications and food supply all depend on the commercial space economy”. He added that governments can make the sector safer and more attractive through smart regulations and targeted support for innovation.
For the Canadian space sector, the global trends outlined by the OECD align with significant domestic changes. Canada’s civilian institutional space budget reached $973.8 million USD in 2025 according to the OECD, thanks mostly to Canada’s lunar programs, which represents 0.043 per cent of the national gross domestic product. Recent data from the Canadian Space Agency shows that the sector contributed a record $3.8 billion (Canadian) to the national economy in 2024. While overall revenues remained flat at $5 billion, business expenditures on research and development surged by 48 per cent to $962 million.
The Canadian space industry is leaning into innovation. The OECD report notes that Canada maintains strong capabilities in robotics, earth observation, and satellite communications. The recent Canadian Space Launch Act will establish a much-needed regulatory framework when it becomes law, for domestic launch and re-entry activities. With commercial spaceports under development in Newfoundland and Nova Scotia, Canada is positioning itself to capture a share of the global launch market.
The broader picture reveals vulnerabilities according to the OECD. The Canadian space sector relies deeply on exports to the United States, which account for 68 per cent of all foreign sales. The OECD warns that concentrated supply chains for critical minerals and launch capabilities pose strategic risks globally. Canada’s recent Defense Industrial Strategy identifies space-based intelligence and space launch as key sovereign capabilities.
The OECD casts the years ahead as a shift from growing the space economy to governing it — co-ordinating traffic in orbit, protecting supply chains, keeping satellite-dependent services running as everyday life leans on them more each year. For Canada, that means closing a budget gap with its peers, building two new spaceports and absorbing a 48% jump in R&D spending, all at once.