For Canadian business owner Mike Wood, as far as Canada’s economy is concerned, the coronavirus has become a decisive factor in the past year. He hopes that relaxing the lockdown will help promote the recovery of his event company and his own destiny.

He said: “For me, it’s been crazy 13 months.” “You can imagine the struggle. Our total revenue dropped by 97%.” His company Ottawa Special Events-Rental Stages, tables, sound and lighting equipment – ??orders have been cancelled many times and 23 of its employees had to be laid off.

He added: “We are unable to bring anyone back, and since April 2020, my business partners and I have not written paychecks.” The government’s financial support is almost inadequate to pay for his mortgage, even when When the order returns, he will also face deferred rent for his business. “There is a lot of despair. I only have two friends who say they are filing for bankruptcy.”

However, after the slow introduction of the Covid-19 vaccine began, the prospects began to look bright, and the economy proved unexpectedly strong.

In April, in the country’s first budget in two years, Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland (Chrystia Freeland) was able to announce funds that observers called the “three Cs”: Climate, Covid and Parenting.

She provided support to the individuals and companies most affected by the pandemic. She also introduced new social policies, including childcare and early education assistance, as well as measures to promote the transition to a green economy.

In the same month, the Bank of Canada stated that economic conditions showed “Impressive flexibilityThe bank raised its forecast for the GDP growth rate in 2021 to 6.5% in 2021, and the GDP growth rate in 2022 to 3.75%. In addition, the central bank said it would reduce the quantitative easing policy, thereby It is ahead of its international counterparts. This also improves the prospects for interest rate hikes.

In this context, Craig Wright, chief economist at Royal Bank of Canada, said that people are optimistic about a consumer-led recovery, and people estimate that they will be 200 billion Canadian dollars (163 billion Canadian dollars). U.S. dollars) as savings, including 117 billion Canadian dollars in payments from the government. Wright said that relatively strong business balance sheets may also drive investment and acquisitions.

To some extent, Canada’s growth prospects reflect global trends, especially in the United States. The election of President Joe Biden and the effects of his $1.9tn economic stimulus plan also help promote Canada’s intertwined recovery.

Wright explained: “We can expect the new government to have a more predictable trading environment and pay more attention to multilateralism.” “Canada is a small, open economy with limited weight. We are in a multilateral and open world. Well done. this [Biden stimulus] It is good news for the growth of the US economy. For the United States, good news is good news for Canada. “

He believes that as the supply chain spans these two countries, the demand in the United States continues to increase, which will help Canadian industry, especially in the automotive industry. In the long run, he expects that as the United States seeks to diversify from China and move towards a “cleaner, greener, and smarter economy.”in a Recent papersWright emphasized that if Canada can use its potential, there is plenty of room for export-led growth. He believes that opportunities lie in carbon capture and electric vehicles, and the United States focuses on redesigning the supply chain and remanufacturing to “response to national security, resilience, pandemic recovery and climate change challenges.”

However, others need to be cautious. Biden’s call to “buy American products” and the cancellation of the Keystone XL pipeline will put new pressure on the Canadian economy. At the same time, low interest rates, limited housing supply and homework have exacerbated the rise in real estate prices. This raises concerns about speculative bubbles and makes it harder for young Canadians to set foot on the housing ladder.

Canada’s aging workforce is also facing a problem, and Canada is trying to solve this problem through a three-year plan to attract 1.2 million immigrants.

Robert Asselin, senior vice president of policy for the Business Council of Canada, said: “It turns out that the economy is more resilient than most people thought six months ago. Unfortunately, growth is not driven by productive investment. It’s driven by consumption.”

He believes that the budget is mainly redistributed, focusing on social expenditures. Instead, he hopes to see more “sectoral, surgical” focus on areas with the greatest investment and growth prospects, such as advanced manufacturing, Clean technology And biological sciences.

Aselin identified a broad need to promote innovation and growth to overcome the advantages of small and medium-sized companies that lack scale. He said: “The government is not paying enough attention to long-term growth policies.” The pandemic is difficult to manage, but the budget should be used to better reconstruct. I think they missed this opportunity to increase productivity. “

Another challenge facing Canada will be the political challenge-the scope of the federal government’s plan to execute and the length of time it can remain in power as a minority government.

The 2020 Canadian Executive Chairman Anna Gainey (Anna Gainey) is a progressive think tank with ties to the ruling Liberal Party. He said: “The commitment is clear. Now, work is starting to start from province to province to understand the regional reality and the situation between urban and rural areas. It will take some time to find solutions across the country.”

Wood is cautiously optimistic about Canada’s recovery and its business. He said: “People know that there will be pent-up needs.” “I hope that starting in September, we will see things come back. We still have a long way to go, but there is still hope. The world needs to recover and make things happen. Life is back to normal.”