Beauty, they say, is in the eye of the beholder. It seems economic prospects might fit into that category too.
As the major chartered banks issue their quarterly updates on the outlook for the economies of various provinces, the divergence of views is quite evident. A few days ago, for example, RBC had Saskatchewan leading all the provinces last year and this year.
Now we have ScotiaBank’s forecast. They see us in second place this year and next but then falling to the bottom of the list in terms of growth next year.
Even with that dismal outlook for next year, they say we will have a solid track record on job creation – second place this year and a comparable performance in 2024 which will leave us with one of the best unemployment rates anywhere, ahead of Quebec this year and a tenth of a point behind them next year.
But housing starts in 2023 will decline by roughly 15 per cent compared to last year as interest rates cool the market and starts next year will be the second-lowest in the last half decade.
