Producing growth with less inflation

Business investment should start picking up

Business investment has been an important reason why Canada is weathering the COVID‑19 pandemic reasonably well.

To adapt to the pandemic, many people started shopping online more and millions of people shifted to working from home. At the same time, investments in digital technology kept many businesses—and the economy—going. While the economy shrank in 2020, the tech sector grew and created many new jobs.

That investment needs to both continue and spill over to other sectors. Overall, business investment in Canada has been weaker than in the United States throughout the pandemic—as it has been for years.

But the Bank sees Canadian business investment improving.

Corporate balance sheets are in good shape, many companies are bumping up against the limits of their capacity, and demand is expected to be strong both in Canada and for our exports to the United States.