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Quebec Finance Minister Eric Girard is scheduled to present the province\u2019s economic update on Tuesday, along with measures to help citizens and local businesses withstand the rising cost of living.\u00a0<\/p>\n
How much aid will be offered exactly is not yet known, but experts say the government intends to support businesses that are struggling the most with tariffs.<\/p>\n
In Premier Fran\u00e7ois Legault\u2019s inaugural speech<\/a> at the National Assembly in September, he said he wanted to “ease the burden on the wallets of Quebecers who are currently suffering,” but without jeopardizing the return to a balanced budget.<\/p>\n Philippe Gougeon, founder of Gougeon \u00c9conomie Politique and former chief of staff to Girard, said he expects Girard to present targeted measures for companies and people working in the forestry, aluminum and steel sectors \u2014 industries in Quebec which are bearing the brunt of Trump’s tariffs.<\/p>\n \u201cSince September, [the Legault government\u2019s] principal goal has been decreasing the size of the government and taking back their economic brand,\u201d Gougeon said, alluding to Legault\u2019s speech capping the cabinet shuffle on Sept. 10.\u00a0<\/p>\n At the time, the premier said that reshaping Quebec\u2019s economy has become urgent in light of global challenges precipitated by U.S. tariffs.\u00a0<\/p>\n State of the deficit<\/p>\n Quebec\u2019s deficit is projected at $11.4 billion for 2025-26 before the deposits to the Generations Fund.\u00a0<\/p>\n Anticipating tariffs from U.S. President Donald Trump, the Legault government projected in March a $13.6-billion deficit for the 2025-26 fiscal year, which translates to about 2.2 per cent of the province\u2019s GDP.<\/p>\n But the province\u2019s deficit could be revised downward by Tuesday morning\u2019s announcement, titled Prot\u00e9ger notre pouvoir d’achat et notre \u00e9conomie (protecting our purchasing power and our economy).\u00a0<\/p>\n Public accounts released in September showed a \u201csmaller-than-expected\u201d deficit for 2024\u201325, revised to $5.2 billion before contributions to the Generations Fund, according to a report published last week by Sonny Scarfone, principal economist at Desjardins. That amount is $2.9 billion less than what was projected.\u00a0<\/p>\n And the Quebec job market remained mostly stable<\/a> from July to September, with a 5.3 per cent unemployment rate reported in October, according to the report. <\/p>\n Legault outlined his government\u2019s economic vision for Quebec<\/a> earlier this month, which emphasized investments in energy, particularly in Hydro-Qu\u00e9bec and data centres, as well as defence spending to align with Prime Minister Mark Carney\u2019s latest federal budget<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n