圣约翰经济预计增长

Provincial stimulus spending, tax cuts and a relatively healthy service sector means Saint John will be the only small- or medium-size city in the country to avoid recession this year, the Conference Board of Canada said Tuesday.

After posting real gross domestic product growth of 2.9 per cent last year, Saint John is forecast to post a more modest gain of 0.9 per cent in 2009, the Conference Board said in its look at 27 metropolitan economies.

"The global recession is punishing small and medium-sized [census metropolitan areas] across Canada," said Mario Lefebvre, the director of the Conference Board's centre for municipal studies.

“Saint John is the lone exception. It will lead these cities in economic growth for the second straight year, although its economy is expected to expand by less than one per cent," said Lefebvre.

The other cities included on the Conference Board's list will see economic contraction this year ranging from -0.7 per cent in Trois-Rivières, Que., to -5.6 per cent in Windsor, Ont., which has been battered by the fallout from the auto sector.

Job growth in Saint John is expected to grow by 1.6 per cent this year, as a $1.2-billion provincial spending plan introduced in March offsets slower construction activity.

Tax cuts are expected to push up personal incomes, which will help fuel growth in the city's service sector by about 1.6 per cent, the research group said. Public administration and defence spending growth will also buoy the city's service industries.