OTTAWA – A new report finds low interest rates are keeping Canadian house prices within reach of homebuyers in many markets. The Royal Bank’s quarterly report on housing trends, released early Friday, shows housing affordability improved slightly in the third quarter, after two consecutive quarters when things got worse. RBC chief economist Craig Wright says […]

The Bank of Canada understands that targeting inflation is still its No 1 job, and that there are limits to its ability to keep borrowing costs on hold to buffer against economic shocks or trouble in the financial system, Governor Mark Carney said today.   In his first remarks on his approach to inflation-control since […]

BRUSSELS/MADRID (Reuters) – The euro zone’s debt crisis swept closer to the heart of Europe despite a clear-cut election victory in Spain for conservatives committed to austerity, adding to pressure on the European Central Bank to act more decisively.   Spain’s Socialists became the fifth government in the 17-nation currency area to be toppled by […]

Related Content Pedestrians are reflected on an electronic stock indicator of a securities firm in Tokyo Monday, Nov. 21, 2011. Japan’s Nikkei 225 index fell 0.1 percent to 8,365.04 in the morning session as Asian stock markets headed lower Monday as a change of government in debt-laden Spain and Singapore’s warning of a sharp growth […]

Canadians can get their hands on the country’s newest banknotes Monday — $100 bills made from a plastic polymer designed to last longer and thwart counterfeiters. Bank of Canada governor Mark Carney will be on hand at an afternoon ceremony in Toronto to formally launch the bills. First announced in June, the bills are a […]

Price of safety enormous in world of low interest rates Retiring today with financial security is challenging. Courtesy of central banks, interest rates are at levels not seen since the Second World War. Then, ultra-low interest-rate policies abetted wartime funding needs. Today, central banks are promising a lengthy period of minuscule rates in a frantic […]

OTTAWA — Federal Finance Minister Jim Flaherty is expected to release his fall economic update on Tuesday in Calgary —and he’ll likely confirm the government won’t meet its 2014-15 target for eliminating the deficit. The Conservative government, Bank of Canada and parliamentary budget officer have all downgraded their economic projections over the past few weeks, […]

OTTAWA — Canada’s economy gained momentum for the third straight month in August as output in the energy sector expanded at the fastest clip in eight months, confirming expectations of solid third-quarter growth. Gross domestic product climbed 0.3% from the previous month as oil and gas extraction surged, Statistics Canada said on Monday, beating market […]

Rising consumer debt nationally has raised concern, and now Canada’s financial regulator is taking action by increasing scrutiny of residential mortgages held by banks, according to media reports. Julie Dickson, superintendent of Financial Institutions (OSFI), said her office is “stepping in to increase the monitoring” of home loans and lines of credit secured by real […]

Canada ranks as the top country among 134 major developed nations for business, according to the annual Best Countries for Business survey by influential business magazine Forbes. The move from fourth in 2010 to top billing is based on a ranking of 11 different factors – including property rights, taxes, freedom of trade, money, corruption, […]