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Winnipeg Free Press - PRINT EDITION

Even more good news for Canada's economy

By: Staff Writer

17/09/2009 1:00 AM | Comments: 0

OTTAWA -- The economy is showing unmistakable signs of having recovered from a year-long recession, economists said Wednesday, citing a string of surprisingly strong growth indicators across a wide spectrum of activity.

The biggest surprise came with Wednesday's release of July factory shipments, the Achilles heel of the Canadian economy. They showed a robust one-month 5.5-per-cent pop in manufacturing sales, more than double the consensus forecast. And the Conference Board of Canada reported new online job postings also rose in August, signalling the employment slide was at least close to bottom. The new figures follow Tuesday's shocking 2.7 per cent increase in U.S. consumer spending that augers more good news for Canadian exports of autos and other manufactured goods. There were additional signals this week that home sales remain strong and auto sales continue to recover.

"This is very good news," said economist Sal Guatieri of BMO Capital Markets.

"The global economy is on an upswing. We are seeing a faster than expected recovery, not just in Canada but in the U.S. as well."

-- The Canadian Press

Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition September 17, 2009 B5

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