Cash-strapped consumers, NAFTA uncertainty, weigh on Canada's telecommunications industry

OTTAWA - Consumers with less to spend on their telecom bundles combined with the uncertainty created by the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) renegotiations will slow growth in Canada’s telecommunication industry, says The Conference Board of Canada.Despite a jump in online services over the past decade, output in the telecommunications industry has actually contracted by 1.5% since 2012, the think tank said a new report. Industry revenues have performed better, but the gains have been due mostly to higher prices and changes to the mix of consumers' telecommunications bundles, which have led to improving margins. However, rising Canadian consumer...