Economist Warns Global Slowdown Will Be On a Biblical Scale

By John Morrissy – “OTTAWA — Such is the severity of post-recession malaise engulfing the world that CIBC’s chief economist invokes Biblical comparisons to warn the end of the ‘famine’ is years away.

‘Akin to Pharaoh’s dream for Egypt, the global economy could well be in the midst of seven lean years, as the debt-financed bounty of the prior expansion left a growth famine in its wake,’ Avery Shenfeld said in his year-end economic outlook.

The Pharoah’s dream, contained in Genesis, portends seven years of prosperity followed by seven lean years. Now halfway though those leans years, which began with the recession in 2008, Canada, and the world around it, will be mired until mid-decade in a prolonged slump, Shenfeld said.

For Canada, that means unemployment will remain elevated, the dollar will drop, wage gains will be meagre and growth will be scant, Shenfeld and other CIBC economists say.

‘As an open economy, Canada can’t help but feel the disappointment of a barely half-speed world. Excepting Europe, we’re not destined for recession, but global growth will barely top three per cent next year, and 2013 won’t be a whole lot better, well below the bounteous five per cent pre-recession pace.'” Read more.

The Worldwide Depression/Recession Of 2012 – “In case you haven’t noticed, the rest of the world continues to slow down and the negative data is accelerating. The big powerhouses of the world, the eurozone including Germany, Japan, and China are leading this trend and there is no reason to believe that the U.S. will not follow. I’ve been writing about this theme frequently lately because, while we are seeing some positive numbers here in the U.S., we are also seeing signs of weakness starting to show up, and since we live in a world of international trade, the world’s woes will hit us.” Read more.

Britain vetoes new Euro treaty – “David Cameron returned home this afternoon after one of the most dramatic 24 hours in the European Union’s history. At a dramatic 5am press conference this morning after all-night talks, Mr Cameron used the veto for the first time and said Britain would not be signing any new treaty… The move sparked the fury of France’s President Nicolas Sarkozy and other eurozone members trying to hammer out a deal to save the euro. Boris Johnson said the Prime Minister had played a ‘blinder’.” Read more.