MontrealQuebec Finance Minister Eric Girard is scheduled to present the province’s economic update on Tuesday, along with measures to help citizens and local businesses withstand the rising cost of living.Finance minister expected to announce targeted measures for tariff-stricken industriesHolly Cabrera · CBC News · Posted: Nov 24, 2025 7:01 PM EST | Last Updated: November 25Listen to this articleEstimated 4 minutesThe audio version of this article is generated by text-to-speech, a technology based on artificial intelligence.Quebec Finance Minister Eric Girard will present the province’s economic update on Nov. 25. (Jacques Boissinot/The Canadian Press)Quebec Finance Minister Eric Girard is scheduled to present the province’s economic update on Tuesday, along with measures to help citizens and local businesses withstand the rising cost of living. 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.In Premier François Legault’s inaugural speech 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.Philippe Gougeon, founder of Gougeon Économie 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 — industries in Quebec which are bearing the brunt of Trump’s tariffs.“Since September, [the Legault government’s] principal goal has been decreasing the size of the government and taking back their economic brand,” Gougeon said, alluding to Legault’s speech capping the cabinet shuffle on Sept. 10. At the time, the premier said that reshaping Quebec’s economy has become urgent in light of global challenges precipitated by U.S. tariffs. State of the deficitQuebec’s deficit is projected at $11.4 billion for 2025-26 before the deposits to the Generations Fund. 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’s GDP.But the province’s deficit could be revised downward by Tuesday morning’s announcement, titled Protéger notre pouvoir d’achat et notre économie (protecting our purchasing power and our economy). Public accounts released in September showed a “smaller-than-expected” deficit for 2024–25, 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. And the Quebec job market remained mostly stable from July to September, with a 5.3 per cent unemployment rate reported in October, according to the report. Legault outlined his government’s economic vision for Quebec earlier this month, which emphasized investments in energy, particularly in Hydro-Québec and data centres, as well as defence spending to align with Prime Minister Mark Carney’s latest federal budget. While Legault applauded Carney’s commitment to defence spending, Girard made known his disappointment with the federal government’s planned infrastructure investments in Quebec. Demands from opposition partiesTomorrow’s announcement is only an economic update – not the presentation of a budget. Still, opposition parties are making demands. Monday, Frédéric Beauchemin, finance critic for the Official Opposition, took aim at the government’s credibility for managing the economy and called on Girard to clarify how the government intends to balance the budget and use the Green Fund.“While Quebecers have completely lost trust in this government, which no longer has any economic credibility, can the minister at least show some honesty and give taxpayers the straight facts?” the Liberal MNA said in a news statement. Alejandra Zaga Mendez, Québec Solidaire critic for finance, urged the Coalition Avenir Québec government to present three measures to lower the cost of living, namely by introducing a carbon tax rebate for lower-income households. “We must not abandon the carbon market; we must improve it. And while $1.6 billion sits idle in the Green Fund, families need support now,” Zaga Mendez said in a news statement published on Monday.Québec Solidaire is also calling for the creation of an emergency fund to combat student hunger as well as 500 spots in emergency shelters in Montreal to keep people off the streets. In 2024, the deaths of at least 108 unhoused people were recorded in Quebec. With files from Cathy Senay, Radio-Canada and the Canadian Press
What to expect from Quebecs economic update Tuesday
