Competition Bureau to host The Competition and Growth Summit in June 2021

The Canadian economy is on the road to recovery after experiencing significant economic disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, including:

• a decline in gross domestic product:
  • Canada (5.4%)[1] and worldwide (4.9%);[2]
• an increase in unemployment:
  • Canada (4%), North America (9.2%),[3] and worldwide (6.5%);[4] and
• a decline in foreign investment:
  • Canada (34%),[5] North America (46%), and worldwide (42%).[6]

In order to examine the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Competition Bureau (the “Bureau”) will host The Competition and Growth Summit (the “Summit”) from June 1 to 3, 2021.

The Summit will consist of three virtual panels which will focus on: (i) the role of competition in driving economic recovery and growth; (ii) the intersection of competition and policy objectives; and (iii) the role of competition authorities in times of crisis.

Participants will include domestic and international representatives from the business, legal and academic communities, federal regulators, and foreign competition authorities.

Within the past year, this is the second time that the Bureau, along with its domestic and international partners, will share best practices and explore new tools and strategies for tackling emerging competition-related issues.

Should you have any questions or require further information, please do not hesitate to contact the authors of this article.

[1] Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, “Economic Survey of Canada” (March 11, 2021), online: http://www.oecd.org/economy/canada-economic-snapshot/.

[2] International Monetary Fund, “A Crisis Like No Other, An Uncertain Recovery” (June 2020), online: https://www.imf.org/en/Publications/WEO/Issues/2020/06/24/WEOUpdateJune2020#:~:text=Global%20growth%20is%20projected%20at,Economic%20Outlook%20(WEO)%20forecast.&text=In%202021%20global%20growth%20is,19%20projections%20of%20January%202020.

[3] Lora Jones, Daniele Palumbo, and David Brown, “Coronavirus: How the pandemic has changed the world economy” BBC News (January 24, 2021), online: https://www.bbc.com/news/business-51706225.

[4] International Labour Organization, “ILO Monitor: COVID-19 and the world of work” (January 25, 2021), online: https://www.ilo.org/wcmsp5/groups/public/@dgreports/@dcomm/documents/briefingnote/wcms_767028.pdf.

[5] Santander Trade, “Canada: Foreign Investment”, online: https://santandertrade.com/en/portal/establish-overseas/canada/foreign-investment.

[6] UNCTAD, “Global foreign direct investment fell by 42% in 2020, outlook remains weak” (January 24, 2021), online: https://unctad.org/news/global-foreign-direct-investment-fell-42-2020-outlook-remains-weak.

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