Provincial Outlook Economic Forecast: Winter 2002

This quarterly executive summary provides highlights of the Provincial Outlook report which presents the short-term outlook for Canada’s provinces.

Document Highlights 

Following relatively strong growth in the 1998–2000 period, real gross domestic product (GDP) growth slowed down significantly in all the provincial economies in 2001. Although the key elements of this deceleration differed from one province to another, the slowing of the U.S. economy had a notable impact on most provinces.

Highlights of this issue include:

• Offshore oil projects will keep Newfoundland on top of the leader board for real GDP growth in both 2002 and 2003.
• Sharp declines in oil and gas prices are having unfortunate consequences for the Alberta economy.
• As the U.S. economy recovers, so will that of central Canada.
• British Columbia will post the weakest average growth over the next two years.
• Manitoba’s well-diversified economy hangs on.