MNI BRIEF: BOC Says Recession Is Possible In Deep Trade War
MNI (OTTAWA) - Bank of Canada Governor Tiff Macklem said Thursday an intense tariff war makes a recession possible but there's a wide range of scenarios, some of his most candid comments to date about the strongest tensions between two of the world's largest trade partners since the 1930s.
“If you get broad based tariffs for a long time, yes, that could very well lead to a recession,” he told reporters in Calgary, Alberta. There are more favorable situations where uncertainty is reduced or tariffs removed and “I don’t think we’ll have a recession in that scenario” he said. (See: MNI INTERVIEW: Trump Risks North American Recession- NS FinMin)
Earlier he reiterated in response to an audience question that a period of weaker growth and faster inflation won't be like stagflation seen in the 1970s. “When people say the word stagflation I think of double-digit inflation and double-digit unemployment,” he said.