OTTAWA—Statistics Canada says the economy grew at an annual rate of 5.6 percent in the first quarter of the year. The figure for the first three months of the year is better than the contraction first forecast months ago, but still represents a slowdown from the 9.6 percent annualized growth seen over the last three…
Economy Grew at 5.6% Annual Rate in First Quarter of Year, Statistics Canada Says
Economy Lost 207,000 Jobs in April, Unemployment Rate Up
OTTAWA—Statistics Canada says the economy lost 207,000 jobs in April as a new rise in COVID-19 cases led to renewed public health restrictions that closed businesses. The unemployment rate rose to 8.1 percent from 7.5 percent in March. Statistics Canada says the number of employed people in April working less than half their usual hours…
Finance Department Says Federal Deficit Hit $282.6 Billion in February
OTTAWA—The federal government says it ran a budgetary deficit of $282.6 billion through 11 months of its fiscal year as revenues dropped and pandemic aid continued to flow. The deficit from April to February compares to a deficit of $7 billion over the same period one year earlier. The government says in its monthly fiscal…
Three Confidence Votes to Determine Fate of Minority Liberal Government
OTTAWA—A pair of proposed changes to the federal budget put forward by opposition parties will determine whether the minority Liberal government will fall, which could trigger an election. The government says it has informed opposition parties that two votes in the House of Commons—on a Bloc Quebecois sub-amendment today and on a Conservative amendment Thursday—are…
Trudeau Government Weakened Canada’s Economy Well Before COVID-19
Commentary As the Trudeau government prepares to table the first federal budget in roughly two years, it’s worthwhile to consider how Ottawa’s policies of higher taxes, increased spending and borrowing, and more regulations weakened the economy well before COVID-19. In 2015, the Liberals campaigned on cutting income taxes for the middle class, particularly for families…
PBO Sees $363 Billion Deficit, Warns of Pitfalls From Liberals’ Promised Stimulus
OTTAWA—Parliament’s spending watchdog says the federal response to the COVID-19 pandemic should send the deficit to $363.4 billion. In a report this morning, budget officer Yves Giroux says the deficit should fall over time as emergency spending measures wind down over the next 12 months. The economy too is faring better than Giroux anticipated, and…
Pandemic Spending Sent Federal Deficit to $268 Billion in January, Feds Say
OTTAWA—The federal government says it ran a budgetary deficit of $268.2 billion through 10 months of its fiscal year as the treasury pumped out more pandemic aid. The deficit from April to January compares to a deficit of $10.6 billion over the same period one year earlier. The government says in its monthly fiscal monitor…
Quebec Tables $12.3 Billion Deficit Budget, Says Balance Will Take Another 6 Years
Quebec needs to make up the economic ground lost during the pandemic before it can balance its books, which will take another six years, Finance Minister Eric Girard said Thursday. Girard tabled his third budget since becoming finance minister, and he forecasts a deficit of $12.3 billion this fiscal year. He also estimates the damage…
Ontario to Reveal 2021 Budget Today, Expected to Announce More Pandemic Spending
TORONTO—Ontario will deliver its 2021-22 budget today, its second spending package during the COVID-19 pandemic. Premier Doug Ford says the budget will focus on economic recovery and fighting the pandemic. Finance Minister Peter Bethlenfalvy says the package will contain measures to bolster Ontario’s vaccine rollout. He says it will also not raise taxes or cut…
Liberals to Unveil Federal Budget on April 19, Freeland Says
OTTAWA—Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland says the federal Liberals will table a budget on April 19. It will be the first federal budget in more than two years, after the government opted not to introduce one in 2020 as the COVID-19 pandemic took hold in Canada. It will also be Freeland’s first budget as finance minister;…
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