Listen to this article
Estimated 2 minutes
The audio version of this article is generated by text-to-speech, a technology based on artificial intelligence.
The outlook for Alberta’s budget in its second-quarter update remains largely unchanged from the previously grim forecast provided in August.
Finance Minister Nate Horner estimates the government will finish the fiscal year with a $6.4 billion deficit, which grew by $1.2 billion from the original estimate provided in the 2025-26 budget, delivered in February.
It’s a similar picture to the one outlined at the end of the summer. The update cited softening oil prices for the growing deficit and said there has been a 30 per cent decline in natural resource revenue from last year.
Oil prices are expected to remain low, the update says.
It also cites population growth and high unemployment as pressure points on the economic outlook.
The 2025-26 budget, introduced just days before the U.S. brought in 25 per cent tariffs on most imports from Canada, anticipated some economic pain. While the global economy has performed better than anticipated, the province says trade conflict will have a continued impact on agriculture and manufacturing industries.
The update also shows that $881 million has been used from contingency funding this budget cycle to pay for new labour agreements. That includes deals for teachers, health-care workers and public sector employees.
The fiscal was introduced just hours after a memorandum of understanding regarding a pipeline to the west coast was announced between Alberta and the federal government. Government officials say it is one of many signals of “light on the horizon.”
More to come.
