The Conference Board of Canada has released its Metropolitan Outlook II report, and it has some good news for the local economy.
The report looked at 16 Canadian Metropolitan Areas.
Despite real gross domestic product growth of just 1.4 per cent anticipated nation-wide, some cities are expected to grow more.
Windsor, London, Kitchener-Cambridge-Waterloo, Guelph, Greater Sudbury and Thunder Bay are all expected to see their GDP grow by two per cent or just less in 2019.
"Slower, but still healthy output growth in manufacturing, the transportation and warehousing industry, and wholesale and retail trade offsets a contraction in construction output," said the report released Thursday.
The report notes Windsor had a surge in job creation last year and the housing market remains hot.
"We found many of the metropolitan areas are boasting low unemployment rates," said Lead Researcher Alan Arcand. "While this is helping drive up wage growth, it also raises the issue of labour shortages."
Windsor-Essex has suffered an ongoing skilled trades gap.
Another common theme in the report is ongoing trade uncertainty for manufacturers who export their products.
"Key sectors in many of the report's metro areas are showing only modest growth as a result of trade tensions," said Arcand noting the United States-Mexico-Canada-Agreement.
Mexico has ratified the trade pact, but the U.S. and Canada are not expected to until the fall.