Canada Data Response Retail Sales (Nov.) The rise in retail sales in November was not as strong as it looks, and the preliminary estimate suggests that sales fell sharply in December amid the Omicron wave. They are likely to fall further... 21st January 2022 · 2 mins read
Bank of Canada Watch Bank of Canada to tee up March hike Amid growing wage pressures, we now forecast that the Bank of Canada will raise interest rates this quarter. While we wouldn’t rule out a hike next week, our base case is that the Bank will deliver a... 19th January 2022 · 7 mins read
Canada Data Response Consumer Prices (Dec.) Inflation rose to a 30-year high of 4.8% in December but is now close to a peak. We expect it to remain near its current level in the first quarter, before it falls sharply over the remainder of the... 19th January 2022 · 2 mins read
Canada Data Response Business Outlook & Consumer Expect. Surveys (Q4) The Bank of Canada’s latest business and consumer surveys suggest the upside risks to inflation over the next couple of years have increased, and raise the chance that the Bank will hike as soon as... 17th January 2022 · 2 mins read
Canada Data Response Manufacturing Sales (Nov.) Manufacturing sales rose strongly for the second month running in November, but the disruption to labour supply from the Omicron wave presents a clear downside risk to output in December and January. 17th January 2022 · 2 mins read
Canada Economics Weekly Ivey PMI suggests widespread Omicron disruption The various reports this week of intense labour shortages and the slump in the Ivey PMI in December suggest that the Omicron variant is causing widespread economic disruption. 14th January 2022 · 6 mins read
FX Markets Update The outlook for high-beta DM currencies in 2022 We think that rate differentials and commodity prices will be the key factors driving the relative performance of six “high-beta” DM currencies in 2022, continuing last year’s trend. We expect all... 13th January 2022 · 4 mins read
Canada Economics Update Will the Bank of Canada hike this month? We expect the Bank of Canada to wait for the coronavirus restrictions to be lifted before starting to raise interest rates, suggesting it is more likely to begin hiking in March or April than at its... 12th January 2022 · 3 mins read
Canada Economics Weekly Omicron a new type of challenge for labour market The Omicron wave will be characterised more by heightened absenteeism from work than previous waves. This raises the risk that the hit to activity will be larger than current restrictions alone might... 7th January 2022 · 4 mins read
Canada Data Response Labour Force Survey (Dec.) The strength of employment in December is mainly because the LFS reference week preceded the onset of the Omicron wave. Nevertheless, the fall in hours worked is probably a taste of what is to come... 7th January 2022 · 2 mins read
Canada Economics Update Five key calls and five unknowns for Canada in 2022 We expect GDP to grow strongly once the current restrictions are eased, but we are sceptical that either GDP growth or inflation will be as high this year as widely anticipated. This leads us to think... 6th January 2022 · 5 mins read
Canada Data Response International Trade (Nov) The jump in the goods trade surplus to a 13-year high in November is another sign that the flooding in British Columbia had only a small impact on overall economic activity. It confirms that the... 6th January 2022 · 3 mins read
Canada Chart Pack Restrictions to weigh on first-quarter GDP growth The economy gained momentum at the start of the fourth quarter and we have revised up our forecast for fourth-quarter GDP growth to 5.5% annualised, from 4.0%. Given the rapidly deteriorating... 23rd December 2021 · 8 mins read
Canada Data Response GDP by Industry (Oct.) The strong rise in GDP in October and preliminary estimate of another solid gain in November imply that fourth quarter GDP growth will be stronger than the Bank of Canada anticipated, and means the... 23rd December 2021 · 2 mins read
Canada Economics Update Restrictions may not derail Bank’s tightening plans The closure of many high-contact services in Quebec yesterday is likely to soon be matched by tighter coronavirus restrictions elsewhere. That said, if other provinces also allow stores and... 21st December 2021 · 3 mins read
Canada Data Response Retail Sales (Oct.) Retail sales rose strongly in October and the preliminary estimate points to another solid gain in November. That is likely to mark the peak for the next few months, however, as the rapidly... 21st December 2021 · 2 mins read
