Filtered by Subscriptions: Canada Economics Use setting Canada Economics
The Bank of Canada justified its decision to keep interest rates unchanged at 2.75% this week on three factors: persistent uncertainty, signs of economic resilience, and concerns about underlying inflation. In our initial reaction during an online …
1st August 2025
President Trump’s latest flurry of tariffs implies that the US effective tariff rate will rise to about 17%, from 2.3% last year. That is a little higher than we assumed and so presents modest downside risks to our forecast for global GDP growth and a …
Not all doom and gloom The back-to-back GDP declines in April and May look slightly less concerning in light of June’s preliminary estimate showing a 0.1% m/m gain, suggesting the earlier weakness was partly a hangover from the export-led strength in the …
31st July 2025
While the Bank of Canada kept interest rates unchanged at 2.75% for a third consecutive meeting today, the communications showed policymakers placing greater emphasis on the downside risks to growth from tariffs than the upside risks to inflation, which …
30th July 2025
Rates unchanged but slower growth beginning to raise concern The Bank of Canada kept interest rates unchanged at 2.75% for a third consecutive meeting today as it awaits greater clarity over the country’s future trading terms with the US. The …
Here for a good deal, not a quick deal Little was divulged following the First Ministers’ meeting in Huntsville, Ontario this week, other than that officials appear to be in general agreement that Canada should prioritise a beneficial trade deal with the …
25th July 2025
Drop in sales reflects end of tariff front-running rather than marked downturn The flash estimate showing a solid rise in retail sales in June, paired with the recent rebound in consumer confidence, suggests the decline in sales in May was more a …
24th July 2025
Uncertain trade outlook will discourage policy tweak Rebound in core inflation and economic resilience provide more scope to wait Bank to resume easing later this year but second rate cut may be pushed into 2026 The recent rebound in core inflation and …
23rd July 2025
Bleak sales and spending intentions captured by the Bank of Canada’s second-quarter business and consumer surveys are consistent with a sharp downturn in GDP growth. However, the surveys were carried out at a time of peak tariff uncertainty. Since then, …
21st July 2025
Counter-tariffs pushing up prices Data released this week showed that headline inflation remained below the Bank of Canada’s 2% target in June for the third consecutive month. While that may seem like good news, it is mostly due to distortions created …
18th July 2025
The economy faces a prolonged period of weak growth as US tariffs and uncertainty over the future of the USMCA weigh on exports and investment. We forecast quarterly GDP growth at or below 1% annualised over the rest of the year. Canada’s retaliatory …
17th July 2025
A tentative improvement The third consecutive rise in home sales in June lends some support to our view that house prices will soon stabilise, even if mortgage rates do not decline by quite as much as we expect. Elsewhere, developers continue to shrug off …
16th July 2025
Underlying inflation too strong for July cut and September looking shaky too The above-target monthly gains in CPI-trim and CPI-median in June leave the three-month annualised pace of those averaged measures holding uncomfortably high at 3.5%, meaning the …
15th July 2025
You've got mail Canada found itself among the unlucky recipients of a letter from President Donald Trump this week, in which a 35% tariff was threatened to come into effect from August 1 st unless more was done to stop cross-border fentanyl flows. Though …
11th July 2025
Strong across the board The strong 83,100 rise in employment and the dip in the unemployment rate in June suggests the labour market is in better shape than we had feared, despite ongoing uncertainty around Canada’s trade relationship with the US. While …
The May trade release underscored the difficulties facing exporters. On the face of it the data were positive, as exports rose by 1.1% while imports fell by 1.6% m/m. This was off the back of a grim April when the trade deficit widened to $7.6bn, however, …
4th July 2025
Exports weaker than they look While the headline export number for May shows significant improvement from a grim April, this was mostly driven by volatile gold exports, where non-mineral product exports declined in the month. Exports to the US continued …
3rd July 2025
Overview – The economy faces a period of weak growth as US tariffs and uncertainty over the future of the USMCA weigh on exports and investment. We forecast quarterly GDP growth of less than 1% annualised on average for the rest of 2025. Tariff effects …
2nd July 2025
The CPI data showed the Bank of Canada’s preferred CPI-trim and CPI-median core measures rose by an average of 0.2% m/m in May, which was lower than in the previous month but still a bit too strong for comfort. Several goods prices rose strongly, as was …
27th June 2025
Manufacturing slump points to weak second quarter The worse-than-expected 0.1% m/m contraction in GDP in April and equivalent sized estimated fall in May suggests that growth was flat at best in the second quarter, with a clear risk of a contraction. This …
The One Canadian Economy Act (Bill C-5) is a positive step towards reducing dependency on the US in the long run. But it will do little to offset the blow to trade from tariffs given that even fast-tracked infrastructure projects would still take years to …
25th June 2025
Data from the first two months of US tariffs being in effect suggest that both Canadian and Mexican manufacturers were struggling to make their exports USMCA-compliant, which poses a downward risk to our GDP forecasts for those countries. The US first …
24th June 2025
Core inflation easing, but probably still too high for imminent rate cuts The Bank’s preferred CPI-trim and CPI-median core measures rose by a smaller 0.21% m/m on average in May, with the three-month annualised rate declining to 3.0%, but that is …
The Summary of Deliberations from the Bank of Canada’s June policy meeting, released on Tuesday, revealed it held rates for three reasons: the economy had slowed but not significantly, uncertainty remained high, and recent inflation data had firmed. …
20th June 2025
Consumers remain resilient to tariffs for now The rise in retail sales in April showed consumer spending remained resilient to tariffs at the start of the second quarter. That said, the grisly flash estimate for May suggests the economy will slow over the …
Tariff shock slowly beginning to pass The rise in home sales in May suggests a nascent recovery is underway in the housing market following a tariff-induced shock. While we see further upside for house prices this year, as lower mortgage rates boost …
16th June 2025
Prime Minister Mark Carney announced on Monday that the Department of National Defence would receive an additional $9.2bn (0.4% of GDP) this fiscal year, raising total defence spending to NATO’s 2% of GDP target. This is five years ahead of the timeframe …
13th June 2025
Add manufacturing to list of weak areas in the economy Manufacturing sales volumes plunged in April as the temporary boost to exports from tariff front-running unwound. Prospects for a meaningful rebound over the coming months look slim, with new orders …
The overnight strikes by Israel on Iran mark a major escalation in the conflict in the region and, with the oil market tighter than it was a few months ago, the risks to oil prices look more balanced than we’d previously thought (rather than skewed to the …
Canada Chart Pack (June 2025) …
11th June 2025
Government officials confirmed this week that talks are ongoing between Canada and the US over a new trade and security deal after the two countries’ leaders met in Washington last month. While little has been given in the way of a timeline, there is …
6th June 2025
Labour market continuing to struggle The rise in employment in May was better than expected but, paired with recent data, still shows that the labour market is struggling. We are therefore sticking to our view that the Bank of Canada will cut interest …
Visa approvals for temporary residents have picked up, which suggests that, rather than contracting as the government previously outlined, the population will continue to grow this year. This will keep upward pressure on labour force growth and we now …
5th June 2025
Reversal of tariff front-running sends deficit to record high The jump in the trade deficit to a record high in April was larger than expected as tariff front-running reversed with “Liberation Day” and Canadian exporters paused to make more of their …
The Bank of Canada avoided surprising markets by keeping its policy rate at 2.75% today, as it continues to wait to see the full impact of US trade policy on the economy. Nonetheless, the Bank confirmed that its bias remains toward loosening policy …
4th June 2025
Rate cuts delayed, but still coming The Bank of Canada avoided surprising markets by keeping interest rates unchanged at 2.75% today, as it continues to wait to see what the full impact of uncertain US trade policy on the economy will be. The accompanying …
A very brief reprieve The ruling by the US Court of International Trade this week (see here ), albeit quickly put on hold, raises the possibility that the US’ 25% fentanyl-related tariffs on non-USMCA compliant imports from Canada will soon be a thing of …
30th May 2025
Fall in domestic demand could still persuade the Bank to cut Despite the upside surprise to first-quarter GDP growth, the contraction in domestic demand means we are sticking to our view that the Bank of Canada will cut interest rates again next week. The …
In this Update, we answer several key questions about how the US Court of International Trade (CIT) tariff ruling might affect the US and other economies. The outlook may now rest on the decision of the Republican-stacked Supreme Court. The upside risks …
29th May 2025
Summary of Deliberations from April meeting struck a dovish note despite Bank’s pause Labour market is weakening while upside risks to inflation have eased Bank set to cut policy rate to 2.5% despite market pricing to the contrary We suspect the Bank …
28th May 2025
How concerning is underlying inflation? The removal of the carbon tax pushed headline inflation down to 1.7% in April, comfortably in the bottom half of the Bank of Canada’s 1% to 3% target range. Nonetheless, the acceleration of the Bank’s preferred …
23rd May 2025
Tariff front-running supports retail sales The jump in motor vehicle sales in March suggests that tariff front-running has supported consumption, although the big picture is that retail sales were strong in most of the key sectors. Likewise, the …
The near-term outlook for Canada is a little bleak. After a solid first quarter, we expect GDP growth to be muted as the imposition of US tariffs and risk of more to come weighs on exports, consumer spending and investment. Employment is likely to decline …
21st May 2025
Sharp drop in headline rate masks hot underlying inflation The removal of the carbon tax sent energy prices tumbling in April, pushing headline inflation below the 2% target. More concerningly, the Bank’s preferred CPI-trim and CPI-median core measures …
20th May 2025
The softening housing market has mostly flown under the radar, but that is soon likely to change following April’s data, which showed house prices taking another sharp leg down. Combined with the steep decline in manufacturing sales volumes reported for …
16th May 2025
Sharp drop in manufacturing sales volumes The sharp decline in manufacturing sales volumes in March suggests the earlier boost from US tariff front-running is now reversing. A modest rise in new orders supports our view that the watered-down tariffs that …
15th May 2025
The recent climbdown has left the effective US tariff rate on the rest of the world at around 15% as opposed to the 27% which was threatened at the height of this year’s trade war. While this is still the highest since the 1930s, it is unlikely to cause a …
13th May 2025
Global Trade Stress Monitor …
The US and China have each suspended for 90 days all but 10% of their Liberation Day tariffs and cancelled other retaliatory tariffs. This is a substantial de-escalation. However, the US still has much higher tariffs on China than on other countries and …
12th May 2025
Diversifying away from the US? This week’s data releases showed a sharp fall in trade flows between Canada and the US in March, following the imposition of some tariffs by the US and retaliatory tariffs by Canada. Canada’s exports to the US fell by 6.6% …
9th May 2025
