Deficit may be smaller than anticipated
The federal deficit for 2009-2010 came in well under Finance Minister Jim Flaherty’s projections according to a report in La Presse. Flaherty’s March budget predicted a shortfall of about $54 billion for 2009-2010, but economists believe the rapidly improving economy could have boosted government revenues by some $5 billion. Over the course of the first 10 months of the government’s fiscal year, which ended March 31, Ottawa was $39.6 billion in the red and economists believe it’s unlikely the final two months would bring an additional $14 billion worth of debt. According to one bank’s top economist, the outlook for this year’s deficit is even rosier, which could translate into a shortfall that’s $10 billion less than Flaherty projected.
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