Highlights from the session included:

• Rosenberg sharing with the crowd Bob Farrell’s “10 Market Rules to Remember.” Farrell, the former Chief Stock Market  analyst for Merrill Lynch and Company was credited by Rosenberg as a great influence in his success and knowledge in the industry.
• Rosenberg joked that Canadians cannot seem to agree on two aspects; the Canadian dollar or hockey teams. Just as Canadians disagree avidly on the best Canadian hockey team, we cannot, as Rosenberg pointed out, seem to make up our minds as to when the Canadian dollar is at its most satisfactory level. Canadians either see the dollar as too high or too low, making it difficult to find common ground
• Canada, despite facing its own economic challenges, is in a better position than the United States. Investors are more interested in investing in our country as Rosenberg stated the Canadian dollar is expected to continue appreciating which is only beneficial as profits can be gained.

Rosenberg concluded that Canada is in a better economic position than the United States as global investors see Canada as a safe and stable place to invest.

Written by: Elizabeth Morris and Milica Petkovic

The keynote speaker of the evening, Hamish McRae – Economist and Associate Editor of The Independent – spoke to delegates about the optimistic future of the Canadian economy. He says, “There is no such thing as a plan, but a mission that can be handed on.”McRae, also outlined the four major global trends, affecting the economy:

• Technology – brings business to an almost level playing field, as communications technologies have become virtually universal
• Demography – The developed world is getting older and the emerging world is “younger.” There are higher pressures in learning how to manage the young and how to utilize the older population
• Government - Governments will have to learn how to work within their means and prepare for the future. Governments cannot operate alone and need help from business communities
• Environment- McRae highly suggests all companies “Go Green.” It is a great advantage in terms of cost for Canadians and instills a strong reputation for business

To conclude the evening, Gordon Pitts – author of Globe and Mail Business Report- facilitated a question and answer period with McRae. Active participation from guests brought up issues concerning Canada’s government, education, “cashless” society, and manufacturing.

Written by: Katie Laviolette and Stephanie Porter

As a five time author, Pitts was the winner of Canada’s National Business Book, Stampede: The Rise of the West and Canada’s New Power Elite. Pitt’s diverse understanding of business and economics will have an overall positive impact on the 2010 OES.

The Q&A session will feature Hamish McRae, one of Europe’s leading futurists on global economics, business and society. The inaugural evening will set the stage for what will be an exciting and noteworthy summit that will lay the groundwork for a more competitive and prosperous future for the Province.

On the one hand, there are those who believe our economy is facing a better than expected fiscal situation and is showing signs of recovery. The current debate for them is whether we need additional fiscal stimulus or whether the status quo should be maintained. According to a recent article in the Financial Post, “the federal Conservative government plans to introduce three new measures in the coming weeks aimed at boosting the country’s economy and stoking job creation”.  It’s reported that the focus will be on job creation through lower taxes and fiscal restraint as opposed to a heavy influx of government assistance, as has been the case in the United States in recent months.  In a recent blog by Glen Hodgson, Chief Economist at the Conference Board of Canada, predicts that “if spending restraint can be kept on track, the federal government should be able to balance its books a full year earlier than projected. The federal debt-GDP ratio will peak at about 35 per cent in 2010-11—still well within manageable levels and significantly better than every other major industrial economy.”

On the other hand, some economists believe the road to recovery is still a long way away. One such economist is David Rosenberg , Gluskin Sheff’s Chief Economist and Strategist. In one of his articles, he raises “the odds of a double-dip recession in the United States from 45% a month ago to 67%, based on his firm’s in-house economic modeling”, which will of course affect our own economy due to our inter-dependent trading relations with the U.S.

Participants will hear both experts outline their forecasts and provide further insight at the 7^th Annual Ontario Economic Summit (OES) in Niagara-on-the-Lake from November 1-3, 2010.   Some spaces still remain for interested senior-level leaders to attend the OES.

Image: CBC (www.cbc.ca/.../iStock_recession_recovery.jpg)

Prior to joining Gluskin Sheff in 2009, Mr. Rosenberg was Chief North American Economist at Bank of America-Merrill Lynch in New York and prior thereto, he was a Senior Economist at BMO Nesbitt Burns and Bank of Nova Scotia.  From 2001 to 2008, Mr. Rosenberg was ranked first in economics in the Brendan Wood International Survey for Canada, ranked second overall in the 2008 Institutional Investors Survey for the U.S., and was on the Institutional Investor All American All Star Team from 2005-2008. Mr. Rosenberg also ranked 4^thout of 104 economists in the 2009 Thomson-Extel survey of global portfolio managers.

He has made several TV appearances and his articles feature regularly in all the major financial and business newspapers/journals. He is a guest columnist for Globe Investor and Report On Business.

Mr. Rosenberg received both a Bachelor of Arts and Masters of Arts degree in Economics from the University of Toronto.

The strength of Canada is not based solely on its economy, but rather a combination of elements that when compiled together give Canada a tremendous advantage.  A recent study by Newsweek Magazine, has ranked the world’s countries based on five different factors: education, health, quality of life, economic dynamism and political environment.  Based on this study, Canada is ranked seventh in the world and the only North American country to crack the top ten.  This is an exemplary feat even without the difficulties of the past couple of years. To find out more, check out the interactive study on the Newsweek website.

A principle commentator and associate editor of the Independent, he is author of “The World in 2020″, which has been translated into more than a dozen languages. He was named Business and Finance Journalist of the Year in 2006 at the British Press Awards and broadcasts regularly on the BBC.  His most recent publication in January 2010 entitled “What Works”, examines best business practices of firms from around the world as they weathered the economic downturn. 

We’re extremely confident Hamish McRae will set the right tone for OES as we undertake to determine what we in Ontario need to do to ensure competitiveness and prosperity for the next decade and beyond.

Taking the plunge into new markets can be risky for small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) and it can be difficult to find the resources necessary to make the expansion. The Ontario Chamber of Commerce has developed a program, Export Market Access (EMA), with funding from the Government of Ontario and the Government of Canada to help SME’s export to new markets and expand within current markets. Since its inception in 2008, the program has helped over 220 companies and given out over 2.3 million dollars.

EMA helps with some of the costs associated with reaching new export markets in four categories: direct contact, marketing tools, market research and foreign bidding projects. The contributions made by the EMA program make it possible for many SME’s to launch themselves into markets that would otherwise be unattainable.

Making these export markets available allows for a stronger more stable customer base for these SME’s. If we continue to invest in business within the province, the Ontario economy will emerge stronger and more diverse. For more information on the EMA program, please visit the website at www.exportaccess.ca.

A recent opinion piece in the Wall Street Journal by Gordon Brown, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, focused on this lesson by emphasizing that trade barriers are a key concern that have the real potential to prolong the recession. The article: Don’t Go Wobbly on Trade – Barriers to commerce are a surefire way to prolong the recession states, “A more interdependent Global economy means that a downturn in one country translates more rapidly to a downturn elsewhere,” but the good news is, “with the global production chain more interlinked than ever before, we all benefit more quickly and more directly from a pick up in global trading flows.”

I say let’s all win together.