2026 Canadian Economics Olympiad:

rules, dates, and Team Canada selection

Good news: we have signed the partnership agreement with the Economics Olympiad (EO), so this year, 10 Canadian students will participate in two most prestigious international Economics competitions for high school students: International Economics Olympiad (IEO) and Economics Olympiad International Final Round (EO IFR).

Dates for the 2026 Canadian Economics Olympiad are as follows:

  • Round 1: Saturday, February 21, 2026 at 7pm EST (Toronto) time (online)

  • Round 2 (“National Finals”): Wednesday, April 8, 2026 (in person, by invitation based on results of Round 1). The exam will be conducted in late afternoon or evening, the exact time depends on the participant’s location

  • Mini Business Case: End of April (online, by invitation based on results of Round 2). Mini Business Case is not a part of the Canadian Economics Olympiad, but one of the steps used to select Team Canada for the IEO

Rules for the 2026 Canadian Economics Olympiad are available here.

Rules of Team Canada selection for 2026 IEO and 2026 EO IFR are available here.

Past CEO results are available on our History page.

The 2026 Canadian Economics Olympiad is over. Results will be posted soon

 
 

Content & Preparation

The contest questions draw on concepts typically covered in high-school, Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate, and first-year-university courses on economics and finance. The questions do not derive from any specific reference resource or syllabus. All students are encouraged to participate regardless of prior economics coursework.

Students can find success using any resource(s), whether it’s class notes, Youtube playlists, an AP review book, a university textbook, MIT OCW online course material, or a MOOC, to list a few possibilities. However, for those who are unsure where to start, the following resources were popular among past CEO competitors:

Knowing AP material well would definitely get you into the National Finals. Knowing a bit beyond that, like IB HL Economics or Mankiw or CORE textbooks, plus a bit of basic finance (time value of money), most likely would be sufficient to get a bronze medal. To do better at the National Finals and to earn a spot at Team Canada, it is highly recommended to take a look at some of the materials below. You do not need to know all of them to win the CEO, but you should know at least some of them to get into Silver or Gold territory

From MIT OCW, courses 14.01 (here in the classroom or here for independent study) and 14.02 (here) would be just right for someone who aims for the gold medal at the CEO (in fact, 14.02 goes a bit beyond what you need to know). Course 14.54 (here) on International Trade covers all important aspects but goes beyond what you need to know for both CEO and IEO. Course 14.12 (here) is an introduction to Game Theory in the Economics context: it is a very good course, but also covers more than you will need for this Olympiad.

A few years ago IEO added finance to its syllabus, so, CEO will also include financial topics such as time value of money and its application to bonds and stock valuation, CAPM and risk/return tradeoff, and investment criteria. Any undergraduate Introductory to Financial Management textbook will be sufficient. Unfortunately, there are no undergraduate MIT OCW courses on this topic, but you can check a graduate course 15.414 (here) - although it covers more than needed, it is not that hard to follow. Finally, some knowledge of derivatives (mostly based on no-arbitrage pricing approach, such as spot and forward interest rates, forward pricing, and Interest Rate Parity) is also expected.

We also recommend that students review previous CEO questions on our History page. Students may also wish to review past IEO economics questions. Note that starting 2026, when we become a partners of the Economics Olympiad, the first round will be closed-book and proctored, and the questions will be easier. Our exclusive education partner, Lorvale Academy, offers courses specifically designed for the CEO. Lorvale Academy has no advanced knowledge of the CEO questions and designs its courses based on topics covered in past CEO and IEO contests and on the official IEO syllabus. Some students find these courses useful as they offer a focused coverage of the required material in a single package.