Canadian Inflation (February 2020)
Posted on Mar 18, 2020 in Economics
Canadian inflation, as measured by the Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose by 2.2 per cent in February year-over-year, down from a 2.4 per cent increase in January. Excluding the impact of gasoline prices, national CPI rose by 2.0 per cent year-over-year, matching last month's increase. Gas prices rose less on a year-over-year basis as a result of lowe...Canadian Housing Starts (February 2020)
Posted on Mar 10, 2020 in Economics
Canadian housing starts decreased by 1.9% m/m in February to 210,069 units at a seasonally adjusted annual rate (SAAR). The decrease was driven by Quebec. The trend in national housing starts fell, averaging about 209,000 units SAAR over the past six months. In BC, housing starts rose by 52% m/m to 39,968 units SAAR, which follows last month's 39...
Canadian Employment (February 2020)
Posted on Mar 07, 2020 in Economics
Canadian employment was little changed in February, increasing by 30,000 jobs (0.2%). The unemployment rate increased by 0.1 percentage points to 5.6%, as more people searched for work. This report does not yet account for impacts arising from COVID-19 due to the survey's timing. Regionally, increases were primarily in Quebec (20,000), Alberta (11...
Commercial Real Estate Lending Activity Declined in 2019 Q4
Posted on Feb 29, 2020 in Economics
The BCREA Commercial Leading Indicator (CLI) fell for the second straight month to 134.3 in the fourth quarter of 2019. Compared to the same time last year, the index is up by 0.3 per cent. Provincial economic activity continued to slow in the fourth quarter of 2019, with declines in wholesale trade and manufacturing sales more than offsetting a gai...
Canadian Retail Sales (December 2019)
Posted on Feb 22, 2020 in Economics
Seasonally-adjusted Canadian retail sales were unchanged in December at $51.6 billion, after rising 1.1% in November. Higher sales at building material and garden equipment stores, and at food and beverage stores more than offset lower sales at auto dealers and gas stations. Sales were up in 7 of 11 sub-sectors, representing 49% of retail sales. Re...
Canadian Inflation Rates (January 2020)
Posted on Feb 19, 2020 in Economics
Canadian inflation, as measured by the Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose by 2.4 per cent in January year-over-year, following a 2.2 per cent increase in December. Excluding the impact of higher gasoline prices, national CPI rose by 2.0 per cent year-over-year. The rise in gas prices in January were largely a function of concerns over global oil suppl...