The Real Economy Blog

Economic News from RSM

Dr. Tu Nguyen, Economist and ESG Director, RSM Canada

@DrNguyenTu

Dr. Tu Nguyen is economist and ESG director for RSM Canada. She holds a doctorate in applied economics from Oregon State University, where she became a leading voice in environmental and natural resource economics globally.

Tu conducts research and analysis on sustainability, labor markets, the COVID-19 pandemic and infrastructure. Her work has provided invaluable insights for international organizations including the World Trade Organization and the United Nations, as well as for government agencies and industry leaders in the United States and Canada.

Before joining RSM, Tu worked as a research economist at Dalhousie University and a research and university lecturer at Oregon State University.
Tu also holds a bachelor of business administration in economics from Baruch College of the City University of New York.

Canadian retail sales rebound amid strong auto demand

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Retail sales in January went up by 3.2%, fully offsetting December’s decline despite the spread of the omicron variant, according to Statistics Canada. In terms of volume, sales increased 2.9%, and there was growth in most industries. The fact that most sectors were little affected by omicron ... READ MORE >

Canada’s inflation hits 5.7% in a warmup for what’s ahead

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Canada's inflation rate hit 5.7% year over year in February, up from 5.1% in January, as price increases continued to broaden across categories, according to data from Statistics Canada on Wednesday. The eye-popping figures, however, do not capture price increases associated with Russia’s invasion of ... READ MORE >

Canada’s job market is strong but uncertainty lies ahead

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The Canadian economy added 337,000 jobs in February as the reopening of the economy more than offset the job losses in January because of the omicron variant, according to data released by Statistics Canada on Friday. The unemployment rate dropped to 5.5%, for the first time falling below the ... READ MORE >

Bank of Canada raises rates in response to inflation

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The Bank of Canada announced on Wednesday that it would raise its overnight rate to 0.5%, 25 basis points from the lower bound policy rate of 0.25%, to tackle inflation. This marks the first rate hike in more than three years. The bank, however, said it would keep its holdings of bonds on its balance ... READ MORE >

Canada’s supply chain worsens amid omicron’s spread

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RSM Canada’s Supply Chain Index worsened to 1.84 standard deviations below zero in January, down from a revised 1.36 standard deviations below zero in December as the omicron variant spread across Canada and the world. The highly infectious strain of the coronavirus hurt the supply chain more than ... READ MORE >

Canada’s retail sales slump because of omicron

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Retail sales in Canada plunged by 1.8% in December across all provinces as the spread of the omicron variant hurt holiday shopping, according to data released by Statistics Canada on Friday. The fast spread of the variant led to tightened restrictions and limited capacity at stores across the country. ... READ MORE >

Inflation in Canada surpasses 5% amid broad price increases

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Canada’s inflation rate hit 5.1% in January amid high gasoline and food prices, according to data released by Statistics Canada on Wednesday. Households continued to feel the impact of rising prices for essential items, with food up by 5.7%, shelter rising by 6.2% and gasoline increasing by 31.7% on a ... READ MORE >

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