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OPINION °THE CONTINUING CONVERGENCE OF CHALLENGES FOR BUSINESSES Oakville Beaver | Thursday, February 23, 2 conte. Oakville Chamber of ked i toward the end of the 2023. Nye also highlighted that con- sumer spending has become more pessimistic, leading to low- er demand and lower GDP growth due to the expectations of arecession and inflationary pres- The frustration is inns and 2022 was a challenging year due to food and other commodity prices beesaee oer the sharpest first major cont of the calendar year, and 200 guests were welcomed in per- son to the ant BBC economic outlook sin: Out of the wate Josh byes se- nor economist with RB! a ented his "brace for a bum ding" financial update as well as Peete for 2023. banks were ety yet vee in interest rate hikes; however, we were getting "close to the peak of those tightening cycles, " fore- casting a challe1 year for both Canada ana the aan econ- omy. Similar] redicted a “modest recession’ with recovery s. Consum- ers are feeling the pinch. From the grocery store to their pocket- books, Canadians are experienc- ingth the very real consequences 0 of Not surprisingly, the top is- sues of concern to Canadians are health care, interest rates, infla- tion and the economy. Perrin Beatty, the Canadien Chamb f Commerce's presi- dent and CEO, has been consis- tently calling on the federal gov- ernment to set a clear strategy for growth. Following the federal govern- ment's fall economic statement, The report concluded that in all scenarios action to restore a sustainable balance between rev- enues an i is re- quired to achieve the govern- ment's indicated policy goals. The pandemic headwinds have eased aul challenges | for businesses have Many bineses ook on oat larkest days of the pandemic ° and have now seen the Ci welcomed both the commitment to fiscal prudence and move toward a bal- anced budget. However, Beatty is not confident a comprehensive and rdinated strategy is in restri on by the pandemic and te we sian invasion of Ukraine. Following Nye's report, Sean Simpson, executive vice-presi- dent of IPSOS Public Affairs, pre- sented recent polling data, titled "A Convergence of Challenges.” According to an IPSOS poll, 61 per cent of respondents feel they might not be able to afford gaso- line while 53 per cent feel they might not have enough money to feed their families. place to generate the investment to create strong, sustainable eco- nomic growth. Most recently, this message was amplified by the former Bank of Canada governor, David Dodge, who co-authored a report released by Bennett Jones LLP where he and his colle: league Rich- ard Dion, along the Business Council of Canada's Robert Asse- lin, looked at five plausible fiscal scenarios over the next decade. insidehalton.com Oakville has a rich and powerful black history. No matter the month of the year, it is our responsibility to celebrate the immeasurable contributions of Black Canadians, which have all too often been overlooked. It is our pleasure to honour Black History Month alongside Canadians everywhere. Metroland Parcel Services has a simple goal service for final-mile distri drivers and 14 depots, our network is always ready for next-day delivery even with increased volumes. Join some of Canada’s largest companies who rely on us for their ecommerce delivery. their debt interest rales rise. lost experts agree inflation and interest rates will be the driv- ing force in the economic land- scape. That s: the business community will! be looking to our provincial and federal leaders to luce policy initiatives that boost productivity and growth as it is now more important than ev- er. Faye Lyons is the vice-presi- dent of government relations and advocacy for the Oakville Cham- ber of Commerce. She can be reached at faye@oakvillecham- ber.com. bution across Onta PARCEL SERVICES I COMMUNITY CARRIER OF THE YEAR NOMINATIONS SOUGHT There are many ways to re- ceive your local news these days, but our carriers continue to deliv- er the newspapers/flyers to your hom Ay newspaper carrier plays an important role in keeping our communities informed. We want to hear about your antl Beaver c carrier, as we are nominations for the Oh otreiand Carrier of the Year. The carrier with the mostnom- inations will have their picture posted in the newspaper and will be presented a gift card with our thanks for doing such a great job. To nominate your carrier, please email valeriesteven- son@metroland.com or call 905 6316095 and press 5 to leave a mes- e Please include your carriers name and/or your street and which paper you receive \dline for submissions is March 31. provide cost-effective, reliable Indeed , with over 15,000 Get a quote today: metrolandparcelservices.ca SCAN FOR MORE INFORMATION