OTTAWA — A weakening economy could give Finance Minister Bill Morneau room to spend big in his pre-election budget later this month, even after he ignored calls to reduce the deficit while the Canadian economy was running strong. BMO recently cut its Canadian economic forecast to 1.3 per cent growth in 2019, down from an earlier estimate of 1.8 per cent. In a speech Thursday, Bank of Canada deputy governor Lynn Patterson said the Canadian economy was undergoing a “detour” that could prevail for some time. Analysts say jobs numbers tend to lag other economic data, and could begin to fall if business investment levels continue to sputter. “It’s the nail that’s sticking out compared to all of the others.”TD Bank on Thursday will also revise down its outlook for Canadian economic growth.

Source: National Post March 11, 2019 10:52 UTC