Canada to Present Fall Economic Update on Dec. 16

By Paul Vieira

OTTAWA--Canada's Liberal government will present its fall economic update a week from Monday, on Dec. 16, as concerns mount that Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland will be unable to keep her promise on limiting the size of the annual budget deficit.

"Our government is focused on delivering fairness for every generation," Freeland said in a statement, unveiling a date for the annual update to the economic and fiscal outlook. "And we are doing this in a fiscally responsible way."

She committed to delivering an economic outlook this past Friday, after weeks of equivocations. Last year, Freeland promised the annual deficit would not exceed 40 billion Canadian dollars, or the equivalent of $28.3 billion. But economists believe the deficit for the last fiscal year, ended March 31, and the current 12-month period would likely exceed that C$40 billion threshold.

Write to Paul Vieira at [e-mail]

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

12-09-24 1223ET