ATB vice president warns of economic issues during passionate address to Alberta infrastructure and energy leaders

The vice president and chief economist at ATB Financial says it was a busy summer for him, and for a lot of other Canadians, too.

“I’m not going to say tariffs ruined my summer, but pretty close,” said Mark Parsons as part of his address at the Alberta Industrial Heartland Association in Edmonton on Thursday Sept. 10. 

About a thousand people were locked into Parsons’s energetic speech at the conference, which gathered political and corporate giants from one of the world’s largest chemical, petrochemical, and energy investment areas in the Edmonton area.

A major part of Parsons’ speech addressed the tariffs Canada has been subjected to since American President Donald Trump and the Republicans retook office, as well as the effects of the war in Iran on the markets and consumers.

“Are you kidding? Trump ran on this. He said tariffs were his favourite word,” said Parsons, who noted that among the tariffs we’ve seen the highest surge in 30-year bond yields.

These high bond yields come as the war in Iran has led to a massive spike in gas prices, with gas at times seen in the Edmonton area at over $1.80 a litre. The price hasn’t been much lower in the United States, with it recently clearing an average of six dollars a gallon.

Parsons’ speech touched on Canada’s economic growth, noting the country really can’t catch a break. 

“The reason you should care is because if we don’t increase our productivity, the amount we produce for every hour worked, it’s going to hit us in the pocketbook. It’s going to make us poor,” said Parsons bluntly.

While the national economy hasn’t, in Parsons’ words, been able to catch a break, the Alberta government has been touting its economic record loudly over the last few weeks.

Premier Danielle Smith and her government have touted several investments, including a $13-billion investment from social media giant Meta in a data centre to be built in the industrial heartland.

Smith is trying to attract more capital to Alberta, having caught a flight to Toronto this week to participate in a summit launched by Prime Minister Mark Carney’s summit to bring more investment to Canada.

Despite the provincial government approving a referendum in October featuring a question on secession from Canada, Smith said over the weekend she doesn’t believe it will lead to any uncertainty.

“I think there are lots of things that investors look for. Investors look for low corporate income taxes, they look for an environment where people and workers are going to want to be, they look for a well-educated workforce. We have all that,” Smith told CTV’s Vassy Kapelos.

Parsons himself seemed to acknowledge Alberta’s economic strength.

“Alberta is basically moving fast, but slowly,” said Parsons. “We’re not going through this boom. We’re not growing five per cent per year, which is what we’ve done in the past. It’s just faster here than anywhere else.”

Part of the reason for Alberta’s growth is the lighter impact of tariffs, particularly on energy, which is the province’s driving industry. The other reason for Alberta’s growth is a rising population.

“People are coming here from other provinces,” said Parsons.

But despite Alberta’s population growth, attractive cost of living, and a seemingly stronger economic situation than in much of the country, Parsons noted there are still warning signs on the horizon for the provincial economy.

One of the more notable things? The provincial referendum on separation.

“I am looking at the survey data and businesses say they care,” said Parsons. “They say it’s having an impact on their business and it’s causing some uncertainty. This is something to watch going into October, whether some of that, depending on the outcome, that uncertainty gets worse or some of that clears.”

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David Boles, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, St. Albert Gazette.