The Canadian economy is expected to pick up speed – a little – by the middle of next year, though external risks still “loom large,” a new forecast said Wednesday.

The country’s gross domestic product will grow 1.8 per cent next year and accelerate to 2.25 per cent in 2014, the International Monetary Fund said in its preliminary assessment of the Canadian economy. That’s down slightly from its October forecast of 2 per cent growth for next year.

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