Year: 2016

The August jobs report was stronger than expected as payrolls bounced back from a significant July decline. Canada’s economy added 26,000 jobs last month (a 0.1% gain), thanks to large gains in the public sector and increased payrolls in Quebec. The rebound followed a disappointing July report where the economy shed 31,200 positions, with big…

Bank of Canada Hold Overnight Rate at 0.5% The Bank of Canada’s decision to hold rates steady once again was very much as expected, even though first half growth was well below the forecast in the July Monetary Policy Report. US growth in the first half of this year was also disappointing, reflecting weakness in…

U.S. Hiring Cooled in August U.S. payrolls rose by 151,000 last month, below the expectation of 180,000, while the jobless rate held steady at 4.9%. This in combination with weakness in yesterday’s Purchasing Manager’s Index (PMI) report for August showing a slowdown in manufacturing activity reduces the likelihood of a Fed rate hike at its…

According to data released this morning by Statistics Canada, the Canadian economy declined at a 1.6% annual pace in the second quarter, the largest quarterly decline since the global financial crisis in Q2 2009. In comparison, the U.S. economy grew at a 1.1% annual rate last quarter, more sluggish than expected earlier this year.  The…

There has been much hand-wringing about the overheated housing markets in Vancouver and Toronto. Accelerating price gains in the past year are indicative of a buying frenzy, especially in Vancouver, which is clearly unsustainable. New listings are way down, new supply is constrained, and buyer euphoria seems to be suggestive of panic fear of missing…

Another woeful jobs report in Canada for the month of July triggers further pessimism. Following three consecutive months of stagnant employment, payrolls fell by a much-worse-than-expected 31,000 in July as the unemployment rate increased 0.1 percentage point to 6.9 percent. Gloomily, all of the loss was in full-time employment, which fell by 71,000 from June…

On a hot summer Friday morning, Canadian and U.S. data gatherers posted GDP figures.  The numbers look pretty bad and both countries, but fortunately, digging deeper, they were not as bad as at first glance. Canadian GDP Data The May figure for Canadian Gross Domestic Product by Industry posted a decline of 0.6 percent, but…

To the surprise of no one, the Fed once again refrained from raising interest rates even though the U.S. economy has posted surprising strength in recent weeks. Following a very weak jobs report in May, the June figures showed a considerable bounce back. Retail sales and housing activity have also surprised on the high side….

In a surprise move, British Columbia introduced a new 15 percent property transfer tax on foreign real estate buyers in Vancouver on Monday, action intended to calm soaring prices. The new tax would apply to buyers who are neither Canadian citizens, nor permanent residents. The definition of foreign buyer appears to include international students and…

The decision by British voters to leave the European Union (EU) has shocked markets and will no doubt lead to continued uncertainty for an extended period. Stock markets around the world are reeling, the British pound has taken an unprecedented nosedive, commodity prices with the exception of gold are plunging and interest rates are falling…