OTTAWA, Dec 11 (Reuters) – The Bank of Canada’s pick to fill
a vacancy on its rate-setting council could offer clues on the
priorities of the well-respected central bank as it gets ready
to replace Governor Mark Carney, named last month as the next
chief of the Bank of England.

As it seeks to replace outgoing deputy governor Jean Boivin,
the bank’s hiring committee will weigh the advantages of
academic candidates or those with an inside view of central bank
operations against those who may have a deeper knowledge of
financial markets, an asset Carney brought and which some say
propelled him to central banking stardom.

OTTAWA (Reuters) – Shares of Nexen Inc and Progress Energy Resources Corp tumbled after the Canadian government scheduled a media briefing on Friday amid expectations that it would announce decisions on high-profile bids by China’s CNOOC Ltd and Malaysia’s Petronas to buy the energy producers.

The rulings would follow months of debate over how much of Canada’s energy sector should be controlled foreign oil companies. Investors have watched closely developments. The government is also expected to release broad new guidelines on acquisitions of Canadian companies by state-owned enterprises,

OTTAWA, Dec 7 (Reuters) – Canada’s economy churned out far
more jobs than expected in November in a surprising comeback at
a time of sluggish growth, offering hope of stronger fourth
quarter economic showing.

However, Statistics Canada’s report on Friday was
accompanied by a negative report on the labor productivity of
Canadian businesses, which fell 0.5 percent in the third
quarter, in contrast to a 0.6 percent rise in U.S. productivity.

OTTAWA, Dec 7 (Reuters) – Canada’s job market bounced back
in November after a sluggish October, the economy creating the
most jobs in eight months, according to data that offered hope
of stronger economic growth in the fourth quarter.

The economy added 59,300 net new jobs in the month, mostly
full-time positions and in the private sector, Statistics Canada
said on Friday in its Labour Force Survey.

OTTAWA, Dec 6 (Reuters) – High household debt and a heated
housing market remain the biggest domestic threats to Canada’s
financial system, the Bank of Canada said on Thursday, despite
tighter mortgage rules introduced by the government in July.

“The most important domestic risk to financial stability in
Canada continues to stem from the elevated level of household
indebtedness and stretched valuations in some segments of the
housing market,” the central bank said in its semi-annual
Financial System Review.

OTTAWA, Dec 5 (Reuters) – The Canadian government and Air
Canada remain in discussions over the flagship
carrier’s request for a cap on special payments toward its C$4.2
billion ($4.23 billion) pension fund deficit until 2023, Finance
Minister Jim Flaherty said on Wednesday.

Flaherty said the government had a “point of view” on the
matter but declined to give details or a timeline for a final
decision.

OTTAWA, Dec 4 (Reuters) – The Bank of Canada held interest
rates steady on Tuesday and said it would likely need to hike
rates “over time”, repeating the formula it used in October
despite weaker-than-expected growth, soft inflation and worries
about the U.S. fiscal cliff.

“Over time, some modest withdrawal of monetary policy
stimulus will likely be required, consistent with achieving the
2 percent inflation target,” the bank said in a statement, using
language identical to its Oct. 23 rate announcement.

OTTAWA, Nov 30 (Reuters) – Canada’s economy lost some fizz
in the third quarter as exports suffered their biggest drop in
three years and businesses scaled back investments, though the
slowdown is unlikely to knock the Bank of Canada off its
rate-hike stance.

The economy grew at a weaker-than-expected 0.6 percent
annual rate in the July-September period, after two straight
quarters of 1.7 percent expansion, according to Statistics
Canada data on Friday.

OTTAWA, Nov 29 (Reuters) – Canada’s budget watchdog said the
Conservative government appears to have overstated its budget
deficit by an average of C$4.7 billion ($4.74 billion) a year
for the current and next three fiscal years.

A report by the parliamentary budget officer (PBO) on
Thursday assessed Finance Minister Jim Flaherty’s revised budget
outlook on Nov. 13, which projected federal budget deficits for
this year and the following three years that were on average
C$5.8 billion bigger than the government estimated in its March
budget.

OTTAWA, Nov 29 (Reuters) – Canada’s budget watchdog said the
Conservative government appears to have overstated its budget
deficit by an average of C$4.7 billion ($4.74 billion) a year
for the current and next three fiscal years.

Finance Minister Jim Flaherty revised the budget outlook on
Nov. 13, projecting federal budget deficits for this year and
the following three years that were on average C$5.8 billion
bigger than the government estimated in its March budget. He
also said the federal government would wipe out a small deficit
in 2016-17, a year later than previously forecast.