The Saskatoon Regional Economic Development Authority (SREDA) has downgraded Saskatchewan’s economic outlook for the remainder of 2018 due, in part, to uncertainly in the mining industry.
Cameco announced on July 25 it was permanently laying off roughly 700 employees and extending the suspension of operations at two northern Saskatchewan operations due to a weak uranium market.
That was one factor for SREDA downgrading its forecast for GDP growth in the province, from 2.0 per cent from earlier in the year to 1.5 per cent.
A reduction in the expected rebound in agriculture output, sluggish job growth, slow retail and construction activity, and fiscal restraint were also factors in the revision.
Residential housing starts are expected to be 25 per cent below 2017 levels, while retail sales are expected to increase 2.5 per cent, due to rising interest rates and sluggish job growth.
“Although our provincial growth forecast has been revised downward, not least due to ongoing challenges in the mining sector, we still see some growth, albeit more moderate for the local economy as a whole in 2018,” Alex Fallon, president and CEO of SREDA, said in a statement.
Renewed activity in the oil patch, demand for key agriculture commodities such as wheat, canola and potash, and continued growth in the tech sector are cited by SREDA as powering near-term growth.
The province’s GDP is expected to grow 2.1 per cent in 2019.
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