Finance minister says weak global growth has been a challenge for Canada

OTTAWA – Facing dismal economic data at home, Canada’s finance minister is pointing out that the global growth outlook has been downgraded about seven times since the federal Liberals took office last year.

Speaking in Sudbury, Ont., Bill Morneau made his first public comments since Statistics Canada released grim numbers last Friday about the country’s labour force and its international trade performance.

READ MORE: Liberals weighing pros and cons of a soft drink tax

The federal agency said Canada lost 31,200 jobs in July, while its trade deficit with the world swelled to a record level of $3.6 billion in June.

WATCH: Bill Morneau says CPP reform will improve retirement outcomes for future generations

1:48 Bill Morneau says CPP reform will improve retirement outcomes for future generations

The Canadian economy also contracted 0.6 per cent in May — the country’s worst one-month performance since the darkest days of the Great Recession seven years ago.

Morneau did not mention any of these figures to his small audience of business people in Sudbury, but he did note that weak growth has been a serious challenge for the Canadian and world economies.

READ MORE: Canada Child Benefit: Everything you need to know

The finance minister says the Liberals have made efforts to address the situation by boosting child benefits, enhancing the Canada Pension Plan and making income-tax bracket changes to provide relief for middle earners.