Daniel Schwanen – Canada’s Commercialization Deficit

There’s a more practical way to regulate Big Tech – Globe and Mail Op-Ed

As the refreshed Trudeau minority government pushes forward with what we presume will be revised versions of Heritage Minister Steven Guilbeault’s controversial bills C-10 and C-36, we suggest it pause, breathe and consider a more poised approach.

The problems with online harms legislation (C-36) are being revealed through the responses of numerous civil and human-rights organizations. The issues connected to C-10 are more firmly embedded within the public memory because of the controversy that ensued last spring when Mr. Guilbeault sought to grant the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) authority over the internet, including personal social-media posts. Its stated intent, while lacking in…

Will there ever be another NHL franchise in Canada? The economics suggest not – Globe and Mail Op-Ed

A new NHL season has arrived – notably with the addition of the Seattle Kraken as the league’s 32nd franchise. The emergence of another American team in a league that only has seven Canadian ones, however, begs the question: What would it take for Canada to secure another NHL franchise? Will it ever happen? The answer requires examining the prospect of financial success.

A first core factor is market size and consumer demand. Having a large enough population with a passion for the sport is key to ensuring that there are not only enough viewers at home to satisfy TV advertisers, but that home arena seats can be filled every game night. Attending a professional sports event is expensive, so relatively high income levels are…

Daniel Schwanen – Reform of the Competition Act

Parisa Mahboubi – COVID Benefits are Ending. Will Workers Return?

Matt Malone – Non-competes Are Holding Canada Back – So Let’s Ban Them

John Lester – Canada’s Support For R&d Is Unbalanced. A Patent Box Would Help.

William B.P. Robson on BNN – Canada’s Business Investment Is Lagging Other Countries

Bill Robson, CEO of the C.D. Howe Institute, joins BNN Bloomberg to discuss how business investment in Canada is falling behind other OECD countries, and how this could impact wages and productivity growth for our country going forward.

C.D. Howe Institute Business Cycle Council Declares an End to the COVID-19 Recession

August 24, 2021 – The C.D. Howe Institute’s Business Cycle Council, Canada’s main arbiter of business cycle dates, has declared an end to the COVID-19 recession.

The Council decided on August 9 to declare an end to the recession that began in March 2020. It judged that the recovery from the recession is now prolonged and sustained enough to declare that the trough of the recession occurred in April 2020, making this the shortest and deepest recession since the Great Depression that began in 1929.

In March and April 2020, there were unprecedented falls in economic activity. April GDP was 17.7 percent below its level in February 2020. The Council declared on May 1, 2020, that Canada entered a recession in the first quarter…

Le Bonhomme Sept Heures Effraie Les Marchés – La Presse Opinion

On le croyait mort, mais certains l’ont vu rôder. Plusieurs prédisent son retour prochain. D’autres en font plutôt des gorges chaudes. L’inflation est redevenue le bonhomme Sept Heures des marchés financiers.

Ce n’est pas tant l’augmentation du coût de la vie qui préoccupe les financiers, par ailleurs bien payés, mais l’effet négatif qu’elle pourrait avoir sur les taux d’intérêt et par-delà, sur leurs investissements. L’inflation soulève aussi un questionnement sur le financement de la dette publique.

Ces derniers temps, l’afflux des bonnes nouvelles énerve les marchés. Aux États-Unis, ils notent l’accélération de la vaccination, le gigantesque stimulus budgétaire et un taux d’épargne très élevé. Cet été, les…

How much has the COVID-19 pandemic damaged the economy? – Globe and Mail Op-Ed

Along with much of the world, Canada’s economy has suffered from the COVID-19 pandemic and other events in 2020, notably the shock to global oil markets. How badly? An examination of the immediate data and longer trends indicates significant damage, with a lengthy recovery period ahead.

Let’s start with labour markets, where there are signs of recovery but also growing evidence of damage. The unemployment rate exploded to nearly 14 per cent from 6 per cent during the shutdown from March to May. The rate has dropped steadily since as many displaced workers have been re-engaged, but the second pandemic wave and renewed shutdowns in many provinces have meant more job losses. Employment fell by 63,000 in December, and…

End of Recession Too Early to Call: C.D. Howe Institute Business Cycle Council

December 17, 2020 – Despite economic recovery since April, it is too early to call the end of the recession, according to a new C.D. Howe Institute Business Cycle Council report.

The Council, comprised of Canada’s preeminent economists in the field and co-chaired by Steve Ambler and Jeremy Kronick, is an arbiter of business cycle dates in Canada. The Council typically meets annually, but also when economic conditions indicate the possibility of entry to, or exit from, a recession.

The Council met on December 7 to review the case for calling April 2020 as the end of the recession based on signs of economic recovery since then.

Entering and exiting a recession implies a change in the direction of economic…