This quarterly economic forecast for the province of Nova Scotia examines the economic outlook for the province, including gross domestic product (GDP), output by industry and labour market conditions.
The Worst Is Past—A Brighter Outlook for Nova Scotia’s Recovery: Nova Scotia’s Two-Year Outlook—December 2020
The Worst Is Past—A Brighter Outlook for Nova Scotia’s Recovery: Nova Scotia’s Two-Year Outlook—December 2020
Provincial Economic Analysis
$705.00
- Nova Scotia’s real GDP is expected to decline by 6.1 per cent in 2020, due mainly to the negative economic impact of the pandemic. The economy will rebound by 3.2 per cent in 2021 and expand by 3.5 per cent in 2022.
- Thanks to the Atlantic bubble, Nova Scotia managed to keep its COVID-19 caseload low from June to October. This allows the provincial government to ease some of its strict COVID-19 related restrictions, thus supporting the recovery in the labour market.
- The $1.29 billion capital investment plan by Nova Scotia’s government for this fiscal year has greatly contributed to the recovery of the province’s economy. Major projects including health care redevelopment and highway twinning will regain some of the ground lost in private business investment this year.
- Housing starts rebounded strongly over the summer, on the back of low housing inventories and pent-up demand. We expect that residential investment will be strong in the near term.
- Government income support programs have significantly boosted household income growth this year. This development has spurred the fastest and strongest rebound of retail sales recorded over the past couple of months.
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