Question: what was one reason that the great depression spread quickly from the united states to other nations

title: Great Depression in the United States
text: In Canada , Between 1929 and 1939 , the gross national product dropped 40 % , compared to 37 % in the U.S. Unemployment reached 28 % at the depth of the Depression in 1929 and 1930 , while wages bottomed out in 1933 . Many businesses closed , as corporate profits of C $ 396 million in 1929 turned into losses of $98 million in 1933 . Exports shrank by 50 % from 1929 to 1933 . Worst hit were areas dependent on primary industries such as farming , mining and logging , as prices fell and there were few alternative jobs . Families saw most or all of their assets disappear and their debts became heavier as prices fell . Local and provincial government set up relief programs but there was no nationwide New - Deal - like program . The Conservative government of Prime Minister R.B. Bennett retaliated against the Smoot -- Hawley Tariff Act by raising tariffs against the U.S. but lowered them on British Empire goods . Nevertheless , the economy suffered . In 1935 , Bennett proposed a series of programs that resembled the New Deal ; but was defeated in the elections of that year and no such programs were passed . Cuba and the Caribbean saw its greatest unemployment during the 1930s because of a decline in exports to the U.S. , and a fall in export prices .