Canadian employment fell 62,600 last month, a bit weaker than expected, following seven months of recovery (see chart below). The rapid rise in COVID cases and the ensuing lockdown measures in many key regions caused the net loss in jobs in the mid-December survey.  Especially hard hit were workers at restaurants and hotels who suffered a […]

The next Bank of Canada meeting is January 20, 2021, below is the summary of todays (Dec 9, 2020) meeting.   The Bank of Canada today maintained its target for the overnight rate at the effective lower bound of ¼ percent, with the Bank Rate at ½ percent and the deposit rate at ¼ percent. The […]

    Rebounding Q3 Canadian Economy Stalls in Q4 The Canadian economy rebounded sharply in the third quarter, posting its most rapid expansion ever. Still, it was a lower than expected gain, and early data show that momentum is quickly fading in the face of a second wave of the pandemic. Gross domestic product rose by […]

” ……. the biggest Covid-19 fiscal response in the industrialized world” … is that a handle that Canada wants to be known for?   Federal Fiscal Update–Finance Minister Freeland’s Debut Justin Trudeau’s government, which has delivered the biggest Covid-19 fiscal response in the industrialized world, announced plans for another dose of stimulus and vowed to continue priming the […]

Canada’s Jobs Recovery Slowed in October With New Pandemic Restrictions The October Labour Force Survey, released this morning by Stats Canada, showed an employment increase of 83,600–well below the 378,000 gain in September and average monthly gains of 395,000 over the past six months (see chart below). Several provinces tightened public health restrictions last month […]

Bank of Canada Maintains Prime rate … as expected.  Some in depth info below from our Chief Economist Dr Sherri Cooper.  If you don’t have time to read all of the below, jump straight to the “Bottom Line” (very end of article).  Cheers!   Bank of Canada Recalibrates Quantitative Easing As expected, the Bank held […]

Bank of Canada Will Stop Buying Canada Mortgage Bonds This Wednesday, the Bank of Canada will release its interest rate announcement and the October Monetary Policy Report. Most people expect the overnight rate to remain at 0.25%, where it has been since the pandemic hit. A few have suggested that the Bank could take a page from […]

Great update form one of our preferred lenders! First National Financial LP The latest employment numbers coupled with the September reports from the Toronto and Vancouver real estate boards have triggered a lot of optimism about Canada’s economic recovery and the state of the housing market. Statistics Canada reports the economy added 378,000 jobs in […]

Hot off the press!  No change in prime rate and the next Bank of Canada Meeting is October 28!   Bank of Canada Relies on Quantitative Easing As promised, the Bank held its target overnight rate at the effective lower bound of 25 basis points with the clear notion that negative policy rates are not in […]

Although the heading is not too positive, looks like housing was silver lining ………….     Canadian Economy Took a Record Nosedive in Q2 Canadian real GDP plunged 11.5% in the second quarter, or -38.7% at an annualized rate, the worst quarterly decline on record (see chart below). This followed an 8.2% plunge in Q1. […]