In this edition:
- Demand for home sales in Niagara continues to decline
- Wholesale sales reach a new a record high in October
- Government announces the 2023 automobile deduction limits and expense benefit rates for businesses
- 7 Eleven to serve alcohol within store dining in Ontario
- The parent company of the Sobeys grocery store chain says cyberattack cost $25 million
Demand for home sales in Niagara continues to decline
The number of homes sold through the MLS System of the Niagara Association of Realtors totaled 371 units in November 2022. This was a decline of 49.1 per cent from November 2021.
Home sales were 39.8 per cent below the five-year average and 37.1 per cent below the 10-year average for the month of November. Here is a brief overview:
- On a year-to-date basis, home sales totaled 6,309 units over the first 11 months of the year. This was a decline of 34.9 per cent from the same period in 2021.
- The MLS Home Price Index (HPI) composite benchmark price was $642,600 in November 2022, a decrease of 8.4 per cent compared to November 2021.
- The benchmark price for single-family homes was $654,500, a moderate decrease of 9.2 per cent on a year-over-year basis in November. By comparison, the benchmark price for townhouse/row units was $609,800, edging up 0.3 per cent compared to a year earlier, while the benchmark apartment price was $461,800, a gain of 5.2 per cent from year-ago levels.
- The number of new listings saw an increase of 18.7 per cent from November 2021. There were 958 new residential listings in November 2022. This was the largest number of new listings added in the month of November in more than 25 years.
Wholesale sales reach a new a record high in October
Wholesale sales rose 2.1 per cent to $83.4 billion in October. The largest increases were in the miscellaneous goods, the building material and supplies, and the personal and household goods subsectors, accounting for 82.4 per cent of the monthly gain. Sales rose in six of seven subsectors.
Wholesale sales increased in every province in October. Sales in Quebec, British Columbia and Ontario led the monthly increase and accounted for 78.1 per cent of national sales.
Government announces the 2023 automobile deduction limits and expense benefit rates for businesses
Today, the Department of Finance Canada announced the automobile income tax deduction limits and expense benefit rates that will apply in 2023.
The following changes to limits and rates will take effect as of January 1, 2023:
- The ceiling for capital cost allowances (CCA) for Class 10.1 passenger vehicles will be increased from $34,000 to $36,000, before tax, in respect of vehicles (new and used) acquired on or after January 1, 2023.
- The ceiling for CCA for Class 54 zero-emission passenger vehicles will be increased from $59,000 to $61,000, before tax, in respect of vehicles (new and used) acquired on or after January 1, 2023.
- Deductible leasing costs will be increased from $900 to $950 per month, before tax, for new leases entered into on or after January 1, 2023.
7 Eleven to serve alcohol within store dining in Ontario
Southwestern Ontario will soon see beer and wine in a corner store. Convenience store 7-Eleven says it has secured a liquor sales licence from the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario to serve beer, wines and coolers at a restaurant in one of its stores in Leamington.
The company says the licensed restaurant also serves food such as chicken wings, potato wedges and pizza. There are similar licensed restaurants at several 7-Eleven locations in Alberta, and the company says the Ontario store is the beginning of a wider provincial expansion.
The parent company of the Sobeys grocery store chain says cyberattack cost $25 million
The parent company of the Sobeys grocery store chain says a cyberattack last month will cost $25 million. The grocery store operator disclosed the estimate in second quarter results released Thursday by Empire Co.
The report does not clarify the nature of the attack, whether it was ransomware or if any ransom was paid.
The company owns 1,500 stores across Canada, including Sobeys, Lawtons, IGA, FreshCo Foodland, FarmBoy and other grocery outlets. Empire reported it earned $189.9 million in its most recent quarter, up eight per cent from $175.4 million in the same quarter last year.
Focus on International Trade
Global trade hit record highs in 2022, but it’s about to take a big hit next year
It’s been a year of bad news, including record-high inflation, a crippling energy crisis, and a war wreaking havoc on world trade. Worried about the impact of the concurrent crises on the global economy, several international organizations have raised the alarm.
The World Trade Organization, for example, gave a bleak outlook for trade and economic growth in 2023 due to “strong headwinds” of a potential recession. As a result, the trade regulations body also cut its economic growth forecast for that year.
But surprisingly, trade soared at the start of 2022 and stayed strong enough during the rest of the year to reach a record high, a United Nations body said. The value of global trade during this year will rise 12 per cent to almost $32 trillion, the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) said in a report released Tuesday.
Canada is losing ground and falling behind U.S. on trade with Africa, senators say
Senators are warning Trade Minister Mary Ng that Ottawa may be falling behind its peers in establishing deeper trade ties with Africa. The Senate foreign-affairs committee has been studying for months whether Global Affairs Canada is responding to the country’s diplomatic needs.
Ng took senators’ questions, which ranged from how Canada will form deeper ties in the Indo-Pacific to whether diplomats are doing enough to leverage the knowledge of Canadians living abroad.
They also expressed concerns to Ng that the U.S. has done more to start trade talks with an African group that spans most of the continent.
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.
