Hospitality and retail led GDP growth in August
Real gross domestic product (GDP) rose 0.4% in August, led by increases in accommodation and food services, retail trade and transportation. The continued easing of public health restrictions and further reopening across the country increased demand across many close contact service industries.
Preliminary information indicates that real GDP was essentially unchanged in September. Widespread increases led by mining, quarrying, and oil and gas extraction, wholesale trade and transportation were offset a by significant drop in manufacturing due to lower sales in transportation equipment and a decline in retail trade.
Click here for more information.
Auditor-General of Canada: climate change poses real risk to Canadian economy
The Auditor-General of Canada has released a new report to Parliament, Lessons Learned from Canada’s Record on Climate Change.
Click here for more information.
Chief Public Health Officer: COVID-19 disease activity continues to decline
COVID-19 disease activity is continuing to decline nationally and in most jurisdictions, reports Dr. Theresa Tam, Canada’s Chief Public Health Officer. Over the past week, an average of under 2,350 new cases were reported daily across Canada and severe illness trends are stable. On average, 2,100 people with COVID-19 were being treated in our hospitals each day, with under 650 in intensive care units. And, 37 deaths were reported daily over the past 7 days.
Getting fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and up-to-date with other recommended vaccines, including the annual flu shot, is an important foundation of protection. Building on this, by wearing face masks, keeping up with hand and cough hygiene practices, getting the best ventilation possible in indoor spaces, and staying home and away from others if we develop symptoms, are important additional layers that can help keep us healthy, while reducing virus spread to protect others and the health system through the winter.
Click here for more information.
Government of Canada clarifies vaccination requirements for transportation workers and passengers
As the Government of Canada announced on August 13, travellers in the federally regulated air and rail sectors will need to be vaccinated against COVID-19. After extensive consultations, Transport Canada issued the final orders and guidance to airlines and railways to implement the vaccination requirements for travellers which are effective at 3 AM (EDT) October 30, 2021. All travellers 12 years of age plus four months who are flying on domestic, transborder, or international flights departing from certain airports in Canada or rail passengers on VIA Rail and Rocky Mountaineer trains must show airlines and railways proof of vaccination.
Click here for more information.
Reading Recommendations
Analysis: Bank of Canada’s early lift-off warning may dampen housing boom fanned by speculators
Reuters
Canada’s pandemic housing boom has attracted a larger-than-usual share of speculators, many of whom took advantage of falling variable mortgage rates to take out multiple loans, but the central bank’s surprise warning this week about an early interest rate lift-off could douse a rally fueled by cheap debt.
Earlier and faster rate hikes could trigger higher payments for many of these buyers, and investors with multiple properties could respond by selling some of them into ebbing demand if their commitments become too onerous.
Already, the housing market has started to cool as fixed rate mortgages rose 60 basis points on average this year, according to Ratehub.ca, tracking rising bond yields. On Wednesday, the Bank of Canada said it could increase its benchmark interest rate from the current 0.25% as soon as April, three months sooner than previously forecast.
Expect mortgage rates to rise in 2022, economists say
CTV News
Canadians looking to buy a home can expect mortgage rates to soon be on the rise, experts say.
The Bank of Canada’s recent forecast is a good indication of why, said Don Drummond, economist at Queen’s University and former chief economist for TD Bank. The Bank of Canada announced Wednesday that while its current policy rate remains steady at 0.25 per cent, it will likely increase as early as the second quarter of next year.
According to Drummond, mortgage rates are bound to follow suit, particularly variable ones.
Featured Content
Workforce Employment Challenges
NWPB is conducting a project designed to identify barriers to employment. Earlier this summer we asked employers to encourage their staff to complete a brief questionnaire that would provide insights on employment barriers, but also employee attraction and retention, particularly in this time of growing labour competition.
Results indicate that the top barriers to employment tended to be consistent with those identified prior to the pandemic:
- Lack of job posts/opportunity in field of desired employment
- Lack of job posts/opportunity at desired level of compensation
- Lack of job posts/opportunity in geography of desired employment
Of note, however, is that for individuals that reported a lack of job posts/opportunity in their desired field of work, just over 71% indicated that the pandemic had made this barrier worse. The first set of survey results are available here.
Throughout 2020-21, we also examined barriers to employment and training in an Ontario Labour Market Partnership project conducted in partnership with the Greater Niagara Chamber of Commerce and Literacy Link Niagara, and funded by the Ministry of Labour, Training and Skills Development. This project focused on the retail sector; for additional insights and other supporting resources see our retail project page here.
All of NWPB’s resources can be found on our website, www.nwpb.ca.
Niagara COVID-19 statistics tracker
Niagara COVID vaccination tracker
Free rapid COVID-19 testing kits are now available to businesses. Visit gncc.ca/workplace-self-screening-kits to learn more and reserve kits for your organization.
Information on government grants, resources, and programs, policies, forms, and posters for download and use, are available here. The GNCC is here to support you. Contact us with any questions you have.
Through the Daily Updates, the GNCC aims to deliver important business news in a timely manner. We disseminate all news and information we feel will be important to businesses. Inclusion in the Daily Update is not an endorsement by the GNCC.
