Canada Entered Recession in First Quarter of 2020: C.D. Howe Institute Business Cycle Council
May 1, 2020 – Preliminary data suggest Canada entered a recession in the first quarter of 2020 with a February peak, says the C.D. Howe Institute’s Business Cycle Council.
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.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the ensuring government shutdown that put a stop to much economic activity, the Council met on April 16 to review the case for calling the beginning of a recession in the first quarter of 2020 and the dating of…
Drummond, Sinclair, Walker, Simpson – Public Health, From Last To First
From: Don Drummond, Duncan G. Sinclair, David Walker, and Chris Simpson To: Canadians concerned about public health Date: May 1, 2020 Re: Public health, from last to first Since the plague of Athens in 430 BC, our world has known many crises, many of them caused by epidemic illnesses of which COVID-19 is but the latest. In the […] Calibrating Macroprudential Policies for the Canadian Mortgage Market
While the effects of the COVID-19 outbreak on the housing market are yet unknown, a new C.D. Howe Institute report provides a blueprint for policymakers and regulators on the tools and timing of interventions in the housing market to address threats to financial stability. In “Calibrating Macroprudential Policies for the Canadian Mortgage Market,” authors Scott […] Steve Ambler Re-appointed As Fellow-in-residence And David Dodge Chair In Monetary Policy
William Robson, President and CEO of the C.D. Howe Institute, announces the re-appointment of Steve Ambler as a Fellow-in-Residence and David Dodge Chair in Monetary Policy. “Steve is a prolific and engaged fellow – a pillar of the C.D. Howe Institute’s work on monetary…Beyond The Black Swan: Housing Market Policies To Avert Financial Instability
While the effects of the COVID-19 outbreak on the housing market are yet unknown, a new C.D. Howe Institute report provides a blueprint for policymakers and regulators on the tools and timing of interventions in the housing market to address threats to financial stability. …National Process Needed to Hasten Vaccine Development: Crisis Working Group on Public Health and Emergency Measures
April 30, 2020 – A national decision-making process should be established as soon as possible to review ongoing research here and abroad and provide advice to Canadian governments, according to the C.D. Howe Institute’s Crisis Working Group on Public Health and Emergency Measures. Unprecedented collaboration will be required if a coronavirus vaccine is to be approved and available to the public within an 18-month timeframe.
Canada should leverage its existing advantage in vaccine manufacturing and begin expanding domestic capacity to ensure access for Canadians and the potential to contribute to the global supply through exports. Next steps include:
Establishing the process for evaluating successful trials.…Phil Oreopoulos – Graduating During The Covid-19 Recession
From: Phil Oreopoulos To: Canada’s graduating students Date: April 30, 2020 Re: Graduating During the COVID-19 Recession The pandemic response means bleak job prospects for this year’s graduating students. There’s no sugar-coating that many will be unable to find full-time work after finishing high school or completing a postsecondary program. The weaker labour market will also have long-lasting effects. […] Michael Smart – Ensuring The Independence Of The Bank Of Canada Remains Intact
From: Michael Smart To: Bank of Canada Governing Council Date: April 30, 2020 Re: Ensuring the independence of the Bank of Canada remains intact With its recent decision to extend quantitative easing policies to provincial debt, the Bank of Canada is setting off into uncharted waters. In recent weeks, the Bank has announced new large-scale […] Mahboubi, Laurin, Robson – How Best To Curb The Cerb Once It’s Safe To Return To Work
From: Parisa Mahboubi, Alexandre Laurin and William B.P. Robson To: Federal economic ministers Date: April 30, 2020 Re: How best to curb the CERB once it’s safe to return to work The Canadian Emergency Response Benefit (CERB) was an early and critical element in the federal government’s response to the COVID-19 crisis. The government first announced the CERB in […] To reopen the economy, put curbs on the CERB – Financial Post Op-Ed
The Canadian Emergency Response Benefit (CERB) was an early and critical element in the federal government’s response to the COVID-19 crisis. The government first announced the CERB in late March, promising $2,000 a month for up to four months for workers who have lost their incomes as a result of the pandemic. In mid-April, it expanded eligibility to make the CERB available to people earning up to $1,000 per month and to workers whose EI benefits had run out.
Widely praised for providing immediate income support and helping contain the coronavirus by reducing pressure on lower-income people to work, the CERB made sense in an emergency. With attention increasingly turning to reopening the economy, however, the CERB is becoming a…
Schwanen, Wyonch – Local Removal Of Restrictions Imposed To Fight The Spread Of Covid-19
From: Daniel Schwanen and Rosalie Wyonch To: Policymakers for the economic reopening Date: April 29, 2020 Re: Local removal of restrictions imposed to fight the spread of COVID-19 As jurisdictions plan the dismantling of pandemic inspired restrictions on economic and social life, they need to ensure that new cases of COVID-19, and the urgent caseload, […] Schwanen, Robson – Our Lessons In Loosening Lie In Europe
From: Daniel Schwanen and William B.P. Robson To: Canadians concerned about reopening the economy Date: April 29, 2020 Re: Our lessons in loosening lie in Europe With encouraging signs on the COVID-19 health front, and mounting evidence of the costs of containing it, attention has shifted to the world’s economies. This is a global pandemic, and many countries […]