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inside today's Editorial Sports Beaver www.insideHALTON.com 3 | Wednesday, February 5, 2014 | OAKVILLE BEAVER | www.insideHALTON.com Real Estate Listen Up Canada Athletic Locker Lowes Canada Staples Home Depot 6 16 Artscene Classified 14 21 *All flyers not necessarily delivered to all homes For home delivery & customer service call 905-631-6095, 5300 Harvester Rd., Burlington New subscriptions call 905-631-6095 or subscribe online @ www.oakvillebeaver.com For more news visit www.oakvillebeaver.com RBC Senior Vice-President and Chief Economist Craig Wright, left, and C.D. Howe Institute Vice-President of Research Finn Poschmann, share their economic insights and forecasts at the annual RBC Economic Outlook Breakfast hosted by the Oakville Chamber of Commerce at Holiday Inn Oakville Centre. | photo by Michael Ivanin - special to the Beaver Canadians curbing their debt While the Bank of Canada is concerned about low inflation rates, the economist said he expects the rates to stabilize while the labour market is showing gains despite December's jobless rate coming in at 7.2 per cent. Wright said Canada's government is currently looking at a budget surplus and noted the discussion going into the next election is what to do with this surplus. He hopes the cash will be used to accelerate Canada's economic growth and improve its global competitiveness. Poschmann, meanwhile, looked to the local housing market and said it mirrored that across Canada, which has slowed in recent months. "There are a lot of indicators and as long as they stay somewhere between neutral and up, I think we can safely anticipate a modest landing for the Canadian housing market," said Poschmann. "In other words, we'll see a levelling off and we'll have little fear of the 10, 20, 25 per cent market implosions we saw in the U.S. during the past decade or even the 10-15 per cent implosions we saw in the Canadian market in 2008." continued from p.1 to see that accommodation pulled back and that is what we are seeing right now," said Wright. "There is still some economic uncertainty, but the clouds are lifting somewhat." The good news for Canada is that the U.S. economy is getting back on its feet with growth expected to be in the three per cent range in the near future. This growth, he explained, is taking place in many sectors to which Canada exports, including auto sales and equipment software. The strengthening U.S. economy is blamed for the dropping value of the loonie though the RBC financial expert noted Canada's housing market, while cooling somewhat, is not collapsing. He was also optimistic about Canada's record high debt-to-income ratio. "We have seen consumers slow the growth in their debt," he said. "As long as there are jobs, there is income and the debt-to-income ratio should stabilize as we move forward." Wright predicts Canada's GDP growth to hit 2.6 per cent in 2014 -- slightly more optimistic than other projections of 2.4 per cent. Helping You Make Smart Decisions About Your Money Voted Number 1 Financial Planner 10 Years Peter Watson MBA, CFP, R.F.P., CIM, FCSI Certified Financial Planner SINCE 1991 220 Randall Street · Downtown Oakville Phone: 905.842.2100 www.peterwatsoninvestments.com Don't Compromise on Driver Training · 20 hours in class · 10 hours online · 10 hours in car (automatic) OR · 12 hours in car (manual) · MTO Approved March 10,11,12,13 March 8, 9,15,16 March Break Course March Break Course 4 days 2 Weekends (Skips Family Day Weekend) 9:30am to 3:30pm 9:30am to 3:30pm Winter Special: (BFF) Bring a friend and both Save $100.00 February 8, 9, 22, 23 2 Weekends 9:30am to 3:30pm UPCOMING COURSES Beginner Driver Education Program Provider www.drivewiseoakville.com 905-845-7200