Nearly 90% of countries experienced lower economic growth for the years 2018 and 2019. Canada is not an exemption. However, analysts were pleasantly surprised by the slight growth of its economy in November 2019.
With the Corona Virus Disease 2019 (CoViD-19) coming into the picture, Canada’s economic resilience will continue to be tested. 2020 looks positive for Canada, but CoViD-19 will be a deciding factor for its economy’s growth or decline.
Canada’s Economy saw slight Growth in November of 2019
Despite the rail strike, pipeline outage, and challenging weather, Canada’s economy surprisingly grew by 1% last November – a figure that took everyone by surprise after expecting a decline due to the factors mentioned above. Experts believe that partially it happened because of the massive rise of gaming tourism.
The economic diversity of Canada allowed it to exceed the expected forecast. The utilities and the construction sector were also one of the driving forces of this increase. However, the mining and the oil and gas industry registered a 1.4% drop.
Despite this, analysts said that the economy is still on a standstill. Canada’s economic resilience is still being tested, especially with the current threat of the Corona Virus Disease (CoViD 2019). The virus is spreading globally, and it might bring with it some negative economic impacts.
Different countries worldwide have been suffering the negative impact of the virus, so Canada’s preparedness in responding to it is a decisive factor on whether their projected outlooks for 2020 will materialize.
Gaming tourism helped the country to have unpredicted growth
Gaming tourism is a very popular sector for Canadians. Millions of tourists travel to Canada just for gambling in casino venues. Data has shown that only in November, millions of tourists visited the country and played real money casinos in major cities. Toronto, Montreal, Ottawa, and Quebec are the major cities where local and international visitors can enjoy their luck. Unlike Macau and Las Vegas, Canada has allowed casino operators to open venues in every city. That’s how a country transformed gaming tourism. Contribution from the gaming industry goes up to 20 billion Canadian dollars every year.
The economy is standing still but experts are waiting for partial recession. Most of the Chinese tourists who love gaming visit Canada or the United States. From late January, Chinese people are not allowed to travel outside the country. Also, most of the countries in the EU and North Canada have limited tourism with China. Experts may don’t want but new coronavirus will affect gaming tourism. That’s why online gaming platforms in Canada have big help from the government as it could be the main replacement of casino venues.
Why 2020 started successfully for Canada’s economy?
For the year 2020, Canada’s economy is expected to have a slight improvement. This growth is projected with the help of the real estate industry, residential investment, and household consumption. It is anticipated that these industries can perform better to offset the different factors that caused the 2019 economic slowdown.
The internal factors that caused Canada’s slow economic growth are already starting to subside. Thus, analysts are hopeful that it will not continue to hamper Canada’s economic growth.
Households are also now able to cope with the interest rate increase applied by the Bank of Canada for the years.
What Decisions of the Prime Minister Helped the Economy to Grow in late 2019?
Further diversifying Canada’s source of income is one of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s decisions that had fruitful gains. The Prime Minister is moving towards making Canada a technology juggernaut, which is creating a new industry that Canada can rely on. It had a positive impact on the unemployment rates as technology is also driving the job market. This emerging industry allowed Canada not to be too dependent on oil for the stability of its economy. Currently, the correlation between Canada’s economy and oil prices have become insignificant.
His openness to migration also posed a positive impact on the economy. Through the Global Skills Strategy program of the government, Canadian companies can process the papers of global talents in just two weeks.
Trudeau also championed gender equality in his cabinet – a move that encouraged corporate Canada to do the same. Their number of female executives increase from 13.5% to 15.4%. Closing the gap on gender disparity proves to be good for the economy.
