MNI BRIEF: Carney Deficit Anchor Unlikely To Hold- Budget Czar

Canada's fiscal "anchor" of reducing budget deficits as a share of GDP has little chance of being met, Parliament's independent budget office said Friday.

"Our analysis shows there is only a 7.5% chance the deficit-to-GDP ratio will fall every year from 2026–27 to 2029–30,”  interim budget officer Jason Jacques said in a report. “This means the Government’s new anchor is unlikely to hold."

Prime Minister Mark Carney’s recent budget abandoned an earlier pledge to also lower debt as a percentage of GDP over time, and the PBO said the budget reference to even just stabilizing that measure still means there is limited room to cut taxes or boost spending.