Calgary likely won’t escape economic slow down: expert

Statistics Canada is out with some new numbers which paint a dim picture of Canada’s economy.

The newest GDP report shows in August, the economy flatlined for a second month in a row, while preliminary data shows that trend could have very well continued in September.

As high interest rates and inflation continue to weigh heavy on Canada’s economy, the country may have already — technically — entered a recession.

This is according to Tuesday’s data, which predicts Canada’s economy shrank at an annualized rate of 0.1 per cent in the third quarter.

And while that might be a small decline, a technical recession is defined as two consecutive quarters of negative growth.

In Calgary, things might not get much better during the holiday season, as Mount Royal University economics professor Anupam Das says Calgarians might be keeping their purse strings tighter this year, as a result of the current state of the economy.

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Read more: Forecasters more certain rate hike are over as recession talk grows over GDP numbers

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“This additional spend may create some stimulus in the economy, but on an individual level I think people will find it financially hard to maintain that level of consumption,” he said.

Meanwhile, the report also showed some industries such as wholesale trade, mining and oil, and gas extraction experienced growth in August, while others such as retail, food services and agriculture shrank.

While this may be frightening to many, Das says some signs suggest there might be no need to panic just yet.

“The job market is still pretty tight, we have not seen a big drop in employment yet,” he explained. “So overall I think we are still in a really early stage to suggest that we are already in a recession.”

But even if Alberta’s oil and gas sector stays strong, he warns Calgary might not be shielded from the potential consequences of a recession

“I don’t think Calgary will be any different from the rest of the country,” Das said. “Calgary’s economy will slow down as well.

“It also depends on how the Bank of Canada will take future monetary policies.”

However, he did stress these are only preliminary findings, and since there has been no significant uptick in Calgary’s unemployment rate, it might be too early to stress.