OTTAWA – Construction on new homes should hold steady for the rest of 2011 and into next year, as a robust housing market is expected to remain supported by strong employment and low mortgage rates, Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. said Wednesday. The agency forecasts that an average 183,200 units will be built in 2011, […]

(Reuters) – A dovish U.S. Federal Reserve will likely force the Bank of Canada to keep its interest rates lower for longer, but market bets on a Canadian rate cut by year-end are unlikely to pay off. Analysts said a rate cut would send all the wrong signals for an economy that is growing, albeit […]

The upside in a global stock market rout may ironically be a healthier housing market – at least in the short term, say economists. “The housing market has nine lives. Every time interest rates are supposed to go down, something happens and it helps to keep the market going,” said Benjamin Tal, senior economist at […]

How to put this politely? While not a deadbeat, the U.S. is no longer among the world’s most creditworthy nations. America now has a lower credit rating than Liechtenstein. And the Toronto-Dominion Bank. Mind you, that’s a matter of opinion. On Friday, U.S. credit rating agency Standard & Poor’s for the first time in 70 […]

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The United States stepped back from the brink of default on Tuesday but congressional approval of a last-ditch deficit-cutting plan failed to dispel fears of a credit downgrade and future tax and spending feuds. President Barack Obama and lawmakers from across the political divide expressed relief over the hard-won compromise to raise […]

WASHINGTON—America’s dismal debt crisis ended Monday night with an astounding twist — the show-stealing return of Arizona congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, back on the House floor to cast a heroic vote to save the country from default. Giffords stunning appearance, her first since being gunned down by a would-be assassin on the streets of Tucson in […]

By The Canadian Press TORONTO – Moody’s Investor Services is renewing Canada’s debt rating at triple-A, the highest possible. The firm said the AAA rating was warranted due to the country’s high degree of economic resiliency, efforts by Ottawa and the provinces to deal with their debt ratios over the coming years and other factors. […]

OTTAWA— Home prices measured by a major national index surged for a sixth straight month to new highs in May but are expected to ease in the months ahead. The Teranet-National Bank Composite House Price Index, which measures price changes for repeat sales of single-family homes in six metropolitan areas, rose 1.3% in the month, […]

Canada’s housing market is in a bubble that’s set to burst and prices could plunge by as much as 25 per cent, a major independent research firm warns. “Housing valuations have lost all touch with fundamentals and household debt is at a record high,” economists at the research consultancy Capital Economics say in their most […]

By Craig Wong, The Canadian Press OTTAWA – The Canadian economy has been on a three-month streak of job creation and businesses appear set to continue that into the next three months, but some economists are raising concerns about the quality of jobs that are being created. CIBC World Markets senior economist Benjamin Tal said […]