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Alberta's economy is on pace to grow by a blistering 6.7 per cent this year, far outpacing every other province, according to the latest forecast from the Conference Board of Canada.
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"Thanks to rising oil production and a swift turnaround in drilling levels, Alberta surged out of recession this year," Marie-Christine Bernard, director of the organization's provincial forecasting, said in a release Wednesday.5 ^2 i/ U3 L, @, F! X: T# j& q/ N* _
9 M6 \: K7 z- K; ]& rCalgary to have Canada's fastest growing economy this year, Conference Board says
+ W" k; @1 r& }The report comes two days after a projection from ATB Financial that pegs real GDP growth at 3.9 per cent in Alberta for 2017, "which is likely to be the highest among the Canadian provinces."
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5 [; ~, ?6 M5 W% [" L$ }The Conference Board, meanwhile, points to numerous signs that Alberta's economy is growing even faster than that.- k2 B8 f5 D$ U$ D' s. m8 m
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"The domestic economy also performed well, as consumers who had delayed making major purchases during the recession flocked to car dealerships and retail stores," the report reads.% j$ q8 O6 l q" z H
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"With oil prices steadily improving since the summer, Alberta's economic performance could well surprise on the upside once more."
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* @8 H; p u1 L) ^% YThe "booming growth" in 2017 comes after two years of economic contraction, and the Conference Board cautions that Alberta won't keep up that pace next year.! S& Y- W. T& v: q# E
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It forecasts provincial GDP to grow by 2.1 per cent in 2018, behind British Columbia's projected rate of 2.7 per cent and Newfoundland and Labrador's 2.4 per cent.
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7 V7 U( p/ B4 z1 P0 e. R3 b"However, recent strength in oil prices could help maintain the momentum in drilling and push economic growth higher over the near term," the report adds.
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Oil price rises to 2-year high above $58 US on supply slowdown. ^, O5 I8 ~; q- E
Calgary's downtown office vacancy glut shrinks for 1st time since downturn began |
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