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Prime Minister Mark Carney speaks to construction workers as he tours a housing development in Ottawa in Nov., 2025. Carney's budget rests on the assumption that its measures will spur the private sector to invest in the country.Spencer Colby/The Canadian Press


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A big part of the federal budget rests on the assumption that its measures will spur the private sector to invest in Canada… a lot. It’s projecting a half-trillion worth of investment. But at a time when Canada is suffering from sluggish productivity and the impact of U.S. tariffs, how realistic is it to expect businesses to invest?

James Bradshaw covers institutional investing for The Globe and Mail. He explains how the government is trying to spur $500-billion in investments from the private sector, and how something called a ‘productivity super deduction’ is meant to fix an issue that has long plagued the country.

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