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BMO Blue Book: Manitoba Among National Growth Leaders

- Stronger U.S. economy to support growth

- Province led country in employment growth in March

- GDP growth of 2.3 per cent expected in 2015, 2.2 per cent in 2016; Canada GDP growth expected to be 1.8 per cent in 2015, 2.2 per cent in 2016

WINNIPEG, MANITOBA--(Marketwired - May 4, 2015) - According to the BMO Blue Book released today by BMO Capital Markets Economics and BMO Commercial Banking, Manitoba's sturdy and diverse economy continues to bring strength to the province with growth among the provincial leaders.

Much like the U.S. Federal Reserve's Beige Book, the BMO Blue Book combines the expertise of BMO's economists with information on current business conditions provided to BMO's commercial bankers by local businesspeople.

"Manitoba's diverse economy continues to support a wide variety of commercial clients, and businesses continue to benefit from this," said John MacAulay, Senior Vice President, Prairies and Central Canada, BMO Bank of Montreal. "Many of our customers are having record years and are taking advantage of the lower dollar, stronger U.S. economy and lower interest rates to invest in new equipment and machinery - ensuring continued improvement in productivity."

Real GDP growth for Manitoba for 2015 is pegged at 2.3 per cent, up from a 1.1 per cent pace last year, according to Robert Kavcic, Senior Economist, BMO Capital Markets. "Last year's performance was weighed down by a big drop in crop production after a bumper year in 2013. With little direct exposure to oil and a diverse manufacturing sector, that would leave growth ahead of the national average for the third time in four years."

Mr. Kavcic noted that the labour market has also improved. "Employment growth led the country in March at a very strong 3.1 per cent year-over-year clip, the best pace the province has seen in 13 years. At 5.4 per cent in March, the jobless rate is now second lowest in the country."

Mr. MacAulay noted the recently released strong job creation numbers for Winnipeg and local jobs created by major infrastructure projects by the province's First Nations continue to drive economic growth and investment. "We are hearing from our customers across the province, in all sectors, that optimism is high for the year ahead. We look forward to seeing just how strong business performance will be, and are here to help business owners in the province reach their goals."

Mr. Kavcic also remarked that while oil production has risen fourfold since the start of the 2000s, the sector directly makes up only a very modest 2.5 per cent of real GDP in the province.

"Manufacturing output has had a solid run since 2010, and is expected to benefit in the year ahead from the combination of a weaker Canadian dollar and still-strong U.S. demand," stated Mr. Kavcic. "In shipping, underlying trends are positive; in particular, transit-sector orders are rolling in from various municipalities - including U.S. cities with improved fiscal backdrops. Also, despite some turn-of-the-year weakness, non-energy exports are holding near cycle highs."

Mr. MacAulay added that BMO's team of experts is here to help customers in the region make decisions to boost productivity, enable them to expand into new markets and make smart investments to drive growth and continued success.

The full BMO Blue Book can be downloaded at www.bmocm.com/economics.

About BMO Financial Group

Established in 1817, BMO Financial Group is a highly diversified financial services provider based in North America. With total assets of approximately $672 billion as of January 31, 2015, and more than 46,000 employees, BMO provides a broad range of retail banking, wealth management and investment banking products and services to more than 12 million customers and conducts business through three operating groups: Personal and Commercial Banking, Wealth Management and BMO Capital Markets.

For further information:
Media Contact:
Jessica Leroux
(416) 867-3996
jessica.leroux@bmo.com

Peter Scott, Toronto
(416) 867-3996
PeterE.Scott@bmo.com

Internet: www.bmo.com
Twitter: @BMOmedia