The head of the Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec is moderately optimistic about the global economy.

Speaking to members of the Chambre de commerce et d’industrie de la Rive-Sud, Henri-Paul Rousseau, president and CEO of the Caisse said, “For the fourth straight year, global economic growth was very strong in 2006.”

“Although the U.S. economy is showing certain signs of slowing, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) is forecasting that the global economy will see strong growth in 2007. Moreover, Europe is expected to experience fairly sustained economic growth, and Asia, especially China and India, continue to grow at a fast pace,” Rousseau stated.

During his presentation, Rousseau identified the factors that affect Canada specifically.

As Canada’s main trading partner, the slowing of the U.S. economy has a significant impact on our economy, especially our exports of construction materials and vehicles.

The Bank of Canada is faced with a considerable challenge in the conduct of its monetary policy, since economic growth is not spread out evenly across the country. Western Canada is enjoying strong demand for its commodities while the manufacturing sector in Québec and Ontario is being tested severely by the relative strength of the loonie and competition from Asia.

“Even so, Canada’s economy has strong competitive advantages and stands to benefit from growth in emerging markets and globalization,” Rousseau pointed out.

“More generally, there are several threats to robust global economic growth. Some are related to short and medium-term risks, such as instability in the Middle East and rising protectionism in certain regions of the world. Others are longer-term, such as the demographic decline of the Western countries and environmental degradation,” Rousseau stated.

“Fortunately, management of these risks is improving on a global scale as a result of increased international collaboration and co-ordination. Over the long term, the growth of emerging markets will represent a major challenge, but will also offer many business opportunities for Western nations.”