VANCOUVER (NEWS1130) – The pressure continues to be downward on BC’s budget.
  
The province’s finance minister has dropped that hint ahead of his next quarterly update.
   
Finance Minister Mike De Jong says turbulent economic times internationally mean words like ‘caution’ and ‘modest growth’ for BC. “Nothing is happening internationally or domestically that makes the situation better. It tends to be putting downward pressure.”

De Jong spent the morning meeting with leading economists.
    
Despite the international troubles, De Jong says many are optimistic about the American situation and feel the US will avoid going over the much talked about fiscal cliff. “The US looks to these experts like it’s coming back modestly, but there’s lots of risk associated with that prediction.”

The economists, members of the BC Economic Forecast Council, expect real GDP growth this year to be 2.1 per cent, increasing to 2.2 per cent in 2013, and 2.6 per cent in 2014.