Canada: Business Confidence holding up – RBC

Nathan Janzen, senior economist at the Royal Bank of Canada, notes that Canadian business sentiment somewhat unexpectedly improved in the Bank of Canada’s autumn (Q3) Business Outlook Survey.

Key Quotes

“Businesses did cite, as expected, concerns about the US industrial sector amid escalating US-China trade tensions. Indeed, some firms now reportedly expect a “small US recession” over the next year. But foreign demand appears to be holding up, to date.”

“There are still clearly legitimate risks to the go-forward outlook for the Canadian economy. But, for now, these survey results – although from a limited sample of about 100 firms – will probably only reinforce the Bank of Canada’s view that rate cuts are not immediately needed.”