Democracy Gone Astray

Democracy, being a human construct, needs to be thought of as directionality rather than an object. As such, to understand it requires not so much a description of existing structures and/or other related phenomena but a declaration of intentionality.
This blog aims at creating labeled lists of published infringements of such intentionality, of points in time where democracy strays from its intended directionality. In addition to outright infringements, this blog also collects important contemporary information and/or discussions that impact our socio-political landscape.

All the posts here were published in the electronic media – main-stream as well as fringe, and maintain links to the original texts.

[NOTE: Due to changes I haven't caught on time in the blogging software, all of the 'Original Article' links were nullified between September 11, 2012 and December 11, 2012. My apologies.]

Saturday, May 09, 2015

Canada's Trade Deficit Jumps To $3 Billion In March

OTTAWA - Canada's trade deficit grew to a record $3 billion for March as the drop in oil prices weighed on exports, Statistics Canada said Tuesday, but economists suggested things may pick up.

"Canada's trade deficit widened to a record in the first quarter, as the weaker Canadian dollar doesn't appear to have had a meaningful positive impact yet and the U.S. economy struggled in the period," Bank of Montreal senior Benjamin Reitzes wrote in a note.

"However, with our neighbour to the south expected to bounce back in the second quarter, the loonie staying relatively weak (even if it rebounded in recent weeks), and oil prices staging a modest comeback, Canada's trade profile is expected to improve in the months ahead."

The deficit was far bigger than the $850 million that economists had expected, according to Thomson Reuters, as imports rose faster than exports.

Statistics Canada said the March deficit grew compared with February as imports increased 2.2 per cent to $45.5 billion, while exports edged up 0.4 per cent to $42.5 billion.

The federal agency also revised the result for February to show a trade deficit of $2.2 billion compared with its earlier reading of a $984-million deficit as exports of energy products were updated.

CIBC economist Nick Exarhos said the record deficit will make some headlines, but it is due to oil prices which hit their lows in March.

The Bank of Canada has said it expects no economic growth in the first quarter of this year, but things will improve as the year progresses.

Looking at the details of the trade report, import volumes rose 1.5 per cent and prices increased 0.6 per cent.

Imports of consumer goods were up 7.9 per cent, while motor vehicles and parts increased 3.7 per cent. Aircraft and other transportation equipment and parts fell 8.4 per cent.

Meanwhile, export volumes increased 1.9 per cent, but prices declined 1.5 per cent.

Exports of motor vehicles and parts increased 11.7 per cent, while energy products dropped 8.9 per cent.

Canada's trade surplus with the United States increased to $2.2 billion in March compared with $1.9 billion in February. Meanwhile, Canada's trade deficit with countries other than the United States widened to $5.2 billion compared with $4.2 billion in February.

Original Article
Source: huffingtonpost.ca/
Author:  Craig Wong

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