On Nov. 17, Don Drummond, senior vice-president and chief economist at TD Financial, discussed the current recession and the challenges that still need to be addressed.
Drummond’s presentation was part of the annual Economic Outlook seminar hosted by Laurier’s Faculty of Business and Economics at the Centre for International Governance Innovation (CIGI).
Drummond said that although we will see more failed financial institutions and mortgage defaults, the worst is over.
However, in order to move on we must first understand why the recession happened.
Drummond pointed to the problematic housing market in the United States as analogous to that of Canada’s in 1980s, where it was built mainly on speculation. It was not unusual to build a subdivision without preselling a single home.
Canada has since abandoned this practice. The Canadian housing market was able to stay afloat because of demand and supply. Drummond explained that Canada simply had more sales and did not operate in a speculative bubble.
Drummond outlined key elements Ontario needs to implement in order to develop a prosperous economy in the next ten years. Some of the basics include becoming a leader in the environment, implementing world-class transit systems, producing a balanced budget and developing a reliable electricity system.
Drummond also emphasized the need to effectively integrate immigrants into the workforce.
