Chief Economist
Over 30 years of experience providing Canadians with the best economic insights.
Dr. Sherry Cooper is a sought-after speaker, writer and advisor renowned for her ability to simplify and de-mystify the complex subjects of economics and finance. She is Chief Economist of Dominion Lending Centres. Canada’s leading mortgage and leasing company with more than 2,300 members offering free expert advice across Canada.
In this role, Dr. Cooper helps Canadians understand the issues surrounding their most important financial decision—buying a home.
An award-winning authority on finance and economics, Sherry is also TMX Industry Professor at DeGroote School of Business, McMaster University and is Chief Economic Advisor to MDC Partners—a Nasdaq-listed global strategic marketing organization based in New York City. Named “the megawatt celebrity economist” by Canada’s national newspaper –and repeatedly cited as one of the most influential women in Canada, Sherry served as Chief Economist and Executive Vice-President of BMO Financial Group where she was responsible for global economic and financial forecasting as well as country-risk and industry-risk analysis. She joined BMO Financial Group in 1994 when it acquired Burns Fry, where she had been Chief Economist, Co-Head of Fixed Income and the first female director of a Bay Street investment firm. Well-known as a media commentator, Sherry’s third book—The New Retirement: How It Will Change Our Future—was a block-buster best-seller.
Dr. Cooper has an M.A. and Ph.D. in Economics from the University of Pittsburgh. She began her career at the Federal Reserve Board in Washington, D.C. where she worked very closely with then-Chairman, Paul Volcker and subsequently joined the Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae) as Director of Financial Economics.
Latest Posts from Dr Sherry Cooper
16 Jul 2018
First Monthly Canadian Home Sales Gain This Year In June
Posted in: Blog Posts, Chief Economist, News
National home sales rose by 4.1% in June compared to May, the first such rise this year. Even so, June’s sales activity remains well below the monthly pace of the past five years (see chart). The sales gains were led by the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) as 60% of all local housing markets reported increased Read More
11 Jul 2018
Poloz Opens The Door For More Rate Hikes
Posted in: Blog Posts, Chief Economist, News
As expected, the Bank of Canada hiked its key overnight rate this morning by 25 basis points to 1.5%. What wasn’t expected was the hawkish tone of the press release which brushed aside the threat of greater protectionism, instead emphasizing the need for higher interest rates to keep inflation near its target. In today’s Monetary Read More
18 Jun 2018
The Spring Housing Market Continues To Be Weak
Posted in: Blog Posts, Chief Economist, News
As we said last month, April is usually the start of a spring housing market ramp-up, but this year the new mortgage stress test and rising mortgage rates have continued to be a negative factor. Those expecting an early-stage pick-up marking an end to the payback for sales pulled forward into the fourth quarter of Read More
8 Jun 2018
Canada’s May Job Loss in Manufacturing and Construction
Posted in: Blog Posts, Chief Economist, News
Statistics Canada announced this morning that Canada’s employment was little changed in May, and the jobless rate remained at a low 5.8% for the fourth consecutive month. The headlines, however, highlighted the modest 7,500 job losses last month on the heels of a 1,100 job loss in April. The job declines are small in a Read More
1 Jun 2018
U.S. May Unemployment Rate Falls Again to 3.8%
Posted in: Blog Posts, Chief Economist, News
Today’s May employment report showed the jobless rate dropping unexpectedly even further to 3.8%–considerably below the level the Fed once considered to be full employment. It wasn’t long ago that the Fed estimated the long-run equilibrium jobless rate in the range of 4.3%-to-4.7%. Economic theory tells us that very tight labour markets can generate inflation Read More
31 May 2018
Housing Slowdown and Wilting Consumers Dampened Q1 Canadian GDP Growth
Posted in: Blog Posts, Chief Economist, News
This morning, Stats Canada released the first quarter GDP figures indicating a slowdown in growth in the first quarter to a 1.3% annual rate compared to 1.7% in the final quarter of last year. This was precisely what the Bank of Canada (BoC) forecast for Q1 in the April Monetary Policy Report (MPR). Yesterday, the Read More
30 May 2018
Poloz Opens The Door For A Rate Hike In July
Posted in: Blog Posts, Chief Economist, News
As expected, the Bank of Canada held rates steady at 1.25% for the third consecutive month but said that first-quarter growth was stronger than expected and that developments since April suggest that higher interest rates will be warranted. The first quarter GDP numbers are out tomorrow morning, and it’s clear the Q1 growth will be Read More
15 May 2018
The Spring Housing Market Is Off To A Slow Start
Posted in: Blog Posts, Chief Economist, News
April is usually the start of a spring housing market ramp-up, but this year the new mortgage stress test and rising mortgage rates have continued to be a negative factor. Those expecting an early-stage pick-up marking an end to the payback for sales pulled forward into the fourth quarter of last year have been sorely Read More
11 May 2018
Jobless Rate Remains At 40-Year Low As Wage Growth Accelerates
Posted in: Blog Posts, Chief Economist, News
Statistics Canada announced this morning that employment was virtually unchanged in April (down 1,100) following a surge in March and the unemployment rate remained at 5.8%–its lowest level in four decades. Wages growth accelerated signalling tight labour markets. April’s stall was only the second time since mid-2016 that the job market did not grow. On Read More
2 May 2018
Rates Held Steady Now, But Gradual Hikes Signalled
Posted in: Blog Posts, Chief Economist, News
The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) met this week for the second time under the chairmanship of Jerome Powell. In a unanimous decision, the Committee left the target range for the federal funds rate unchanged at 1-1/2 to 1-3/4 percent. Unlike the Bank of Canada, which has a single objective of targeting inflation at roughly Read More
