Grandparent scam: London, Ont., senior beats fraudsters not once, but twice
It was a typical Tuesday for Mabel Beharrell, 84, until she got the call that would turn her world upside down. Her teenaged grandson was in trouble and needed her help.
The Bank of Canada has left its economic aid package untouched, brushing off shortfalls in growth figures so far this year and seeing a more solid foundation for a strong rebound in the coming months.
First-quarter growth figures for the Canadian economy came in below the central bank's forecast, and renewed lockdowns during the third wave of the pandemic have dampened economic activity.
BMO director of Canadian rates Benjamin Reitzes said the bank missed its first quarter forecast by 1.4 percentage points, and it's possible growth figures in the second quarter will also fall short of expectations.
Senior decision-makers at the central bank saw past those obstacles on Wednesday, saying they expect the Canadian economy to rebound strongly starting this summer, led by consumer spending as the pace of vaccinations picks up and provincial governments ease economic restrictions.
"They're still unfazed by the third wave and their miss in the first quarter," Reitzes said. "Their optimistic tone persist through all of this."
The bank kept its key policy rate on hold at 0.25 per cent on Wednesday, which is where it has been since the onset of the pandemic last year. The central bank has said it won't increase the rate until the economy has recovered that on Wednesday the bank said would likely happen in the second half of 2022.
A recovery in the labour market also remains a key factor in future bank decisions, said TD senior economist Sri Thanabalasingam. If employment bounces back quickly this summer, it could force the bank to raise rates sooner, he said.
The bank also said Wednesday that it will stay the course on its federal bond-buying activities after tapering purchases just a few weeks ago citing improving economic conditions. The purchases help drive down rates charged on mortgages and business loans.
The bank's governing council said inflation should hover around three per cent over the summer because of higher gas prices, which are being compared against the low levels of the early pandemic months.
Inflation should ease later this year, the bank said, returning toward the Bank of Canada's two-per-cent target.
Moshe Lander, a senior lecturer of economics at Concordia University, said the bank may hold off on any rate changes to not choke off any nascent rebound.
But the longer it holds off doing anything, the closer it will come to the fall and the likelihood of a federal election campaign.
The bank traditionally avoids any rate moves during an election period, not wanting its actions to be politicized and threatening its independence.
"Unless there's a clear economic signal that interest rates do need to be raised and it has to be done now, I think that the Bank of Canada's is probably going to try and sit this one out," Lander said.
When and how the central bank unwinds its monetary stimulus will have implications for fiscal policymakers, said Robert Asselin, senior vice-president policy at the Business Council of Canada.
Federal politicians, he said, could find themselves being forced to respond to inflation if voters raise concerns before or during a campaign, or if markets become more volatile. And when the bank starts raising rates, the federal government will face questions about whether it needs to keep open the taps of stimulus spending, Asselin said.
"It will be hard for policymakers to justify very open, loose fiscal policy, if monetary (policy) is basically saying, we think that we've recovered from the crisis," said Asselin, a former budget advisor to the federal Liberals.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 9, 2021.
It was a typical Tuesday for Mabel Beharrell, 84, until she got the call that would turn her world upside down. Her teenaged grandson was in trouble and needed her help.
The deaths of four people on a farm near the Saskatchewan village of Neudorf have been confirmed a murder-suicide.
The Canada Revenue Agency announced Thursday it will not require 'bare trust' reporting from Canadians that it introduced for the 2024 tax season, just four days before the April 2 deadline.
The Parole Board of Canada has granted full parole to one of three men convicted in the brutal murders of three McDonald's restaurant workers in Cape Breton more than 30 years ago.
Nearly 20 hours after a man climbed and remained perched on top of the Reconciliation Bridge in downtown Calgary, the situation came to a peaceful resolution.
Ontario released its annual sunshine list Thursday afternoon, noting that the largest year-over-year increases were in hospitals, municipalities, and post-secondary sectors.
Genetic analysis has shed light on a long-standing mystery surrounding the fates of U.S. President George Washington's younger brother Samuel and his kin.
A spokesman for a regional Muslim advocacy group says Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre's stance on the Israel-Hamas war could complicate his party's relationship with Muslim Canadians.
Former U.S. President Donald Trump is officially selling a copy of the Bible themed to Lee Greenwood’s famous song, 'God Bless the USA.' But the concept of a Bible covered in the American flag has raised concern among religious circles.
B.C. conservation officers recently seized a nine-foot-long Burmese python from a home in Chilliwack.
A New Brunswicker will go to bed Thursday night much richer than he was Wednesday after collecting on a winning lottery ticket he let sit on his bedroom dresser for nearly a year.
The Ontario government is introducing changes to auto-insurance, but some experts say the move is ill-advised.
A Toronto restaurant introduced a surprising new rule that reduced the cost of a meal and raised the salaries of staff.
Newfoundland’s unique version of the Pine Marten has grown out of its threatened designation.
A Toronto man is out $12,000 after falling victim to a deepfake cryptocurrency scam that appeared to involve Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
It started small with a little pop tab collection to simply raise some money for charity and help someone — but it didn’t take long for word to get out that 10-year-old Jace Weber from Mildmay, Ont. was quickly building up a large supply of aluminum pop tabs.
There’s a group of people in Saskatoon that proudly call themselves dumpster divers, and they’re turning the city’s trash into treasure.
Ontario is facing a larger than anticipated deficit but the Doug Ford government still plans to balance its books before the next provincial election.