A pick-up in economic activity is catching on north and south of the border.
A flurry of recent positive reports suggests the mighty U.S. economic machine is gearing up for a recovery. Hopes are that the positive growth will flow north of the border as well.
A survey released by the the National Association of Business Economists Monday suggests growth should accelerate in the second quarter and remain healthy for the rest of this year. The report predicts growth will remain steady, that consumer spending will pick up.
The report comes in the wake of recent job data suggesting the U.S. economy added 217,000 jobs in May. Job gains have averaged 234,000 in the past three months, up from 150,000 a month previously. This is good for an economy that has never really recovered to pre-2008 growth levels. Best yet, the confidence seems to be catching up in Canada as well.
The Canadian economy slowed through the long winter. But a survey published last week polling the attitudes of Canadian professional accountants suggests many are feeling much better about the prospects for the country's economy over the next 12 months.
According to the latest CPA Canada Business Monitor more than half (55 per cent) of those surveyed are optimistic about the economy. This is up sharply from the last quarter of 2013 when only 34 per cent expressed optimism. Looking ahead, seventy-three per cent of respondents expect revenues at the companies they work for to grow in the next year and 66 per cent are forecasting an increase in profits.
"There definitely is a strong undercurrent of optimism flowing through the survey findings," says Kevin Dance, president and CEO, Chartered Professional Accountants of Canada. "However, as we have said before, one quarter does not represent a trend but in this case the many encouraging signals do offer hope of a strengthening Canadian economy."
A survey released by the the National Association of Business Economists Monday suggests growth should accelerate in the second quarter and remain healthy for the rest of this year. The report predicts growth will remain steady, that consumer spending will pick up.
The report comes in the wake of recent job data suggesting the U.S. economy added 217,000 jobs in May. Job gains have averaged 234,000 in the past three months, up from 150,000 a month previously. This is good for an economy that has never really recovered to pre-2008 growth levels. Best yet, the confidence seems to be catching up in Canada as well.
The Canadian economy slowed through the long winter. But a survey published last week polling the attitudes of Canadian professional accountants suggests many are feeling much better about the prospects for the country's economy over the next 12 months.
According to the latest CPA Canada Business Monitor more than half (55 per cent) of those surveyed are optimistic about the economy. This is up sharply from the last quarter of 2013 when only 34 per cent expressed optimism. Looking ahead, seventy-three per cent of respondents expect revenues at the companies they work for to grow in the next year and 66 per cent are forecasting an increase in profits.
"There definitely is a strong undercurrent of optimism flowing through the survey findings," says Kevin Dance, president and CEO, Chartered Professional Accountants of Canada. "However, as we have said before, one quarter does not represent a trend but in this case the many encouraging signals do offer hope of a strengthening Canadian economy."
