With all the noise of back-to-back provincial and federal election campaigns, you’d be forgiven for not hearing the cracking sounds coming from Ontario’s fragile economy since January, even before U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs began to bite.
- The unemployment rate in the province was 7.6 per cent in January, 7.3 per cent in February and 7.5 per cent in March, Statistics Canada reported. The only province with a higher unemployment rate right now is Newfoundland and Labrador.
- Ontario’s real GDP grew by just 1.2 per cent in 2024, Statistics Canada reported. The only provincial economy that grew more slowly last year was Manitoba’s.
- Only 15 per cent of businesses felt confident in the province’s economy in February, down from 26 per cent in December, according to a survey for the Ontario Chamber of Commerce.
It all paints a picture of an economy that was already rather feeble, just as Trump’s tariffs appear poised to kneecap Ontario’s export-oriented …