Bank of Canada maintains policy rate and forward guidance, ends quantitative easing

The Bank of Canada today held its target for the overnight rate at the effective lower bound of ¼ percent, with the Bank Rate at ½ percent and the deposit rate at ¼ percent. The Bank’s extraordinary forward guidance on the path for the overnight rate is being maintained. The Bank is ending quantitative easing (QE) and moving into the reinvestment phase, during which it will purchase Government of Canada bonds solely to replace maturing bonds.

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Ontario Chamber and Tourism Industry Association announce partnership to support Ontario tourism’s economic recovery

With the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, Ontario’s tourism industry was one of the hardest-hit – and it will be one of the last to fully recover. The Ontario Chamber of Commerce (OCC) is pleased to announce its partnership with the Tourism Industry Association of Ontario (TIAO) to support the sector’s economic recovery.

In early 2022, the OCC and TIAO will host two roundtables that will bring together tourism operators, industry experts, associations, chambers of commerce, and boards of trade across the province. The insights gathered during these consultations will inform a joint report examining the state of Ontario’s tourism industry after two unprecedented years navigating a global pandemic. The report will include a ‘ground-level’ look at the industry’s recovery, its path forward, and timely recommendations to government.

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Canadian income inequality at lowest level since 1999

Statistics Canada reports that household income inequality was at the lowest level ever recorded since the beginning of the data series in 1999. Household disposable income increased in both the first and second quarters of 2021 for the lowest-income households. Households in all other income quintiles recorded lower disposable income in the first quarter, followed by higher income in the second quarter. The result of these changes was a further decline in the gap between the top two and bottom two income quintiles’ share of total disposable income over the first half of 2021.

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Brock University will retain vaccine mandate, masking, and daily screening for winter term

Brock’s vaccine requirement will remain in effect for the Winter Term, as will public health measures such as the mandatory wearing of face coverings indoors and the mandatory daily use of the University’s COVID-19 screening tool.

All faculty, staff and students attending campus or any affiliated sites for any reason in the Winter Term must demonstrate proof of full vaccination by Friday, Dec. 10 unless they have an approved exemption.

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Niagara College increases nursing intake by 50% to address labour shortage

To support the demand for more nurses in Ontario, the College has expanded enrolment for its Practical Nursing program this Fall term. Its Fall intake includes 90 students, an increase from its usual intake of 60 in its regular delivery stream, in addition to a class of 30 in the alternate delivery stream who attend classes on evenings and weekends.

Dean of Community and Health Studies Carolyn Triemstra noted that NC’s Applied Health Institute has ramped up operations to seven days a week this Fall term to accommodate an increase in students in its School of Nursing and Personal Support Worker Studies.

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Bank of Canada Monetary Report shows strong growth, forecasts continued recovery

Reading Recommendations

For Canada, meeting its current climate targets will be complicated and expensive

CBC News

Canada’s track record has been pretty simple when it comes to climate targets.

Step 1: Set an ambitious goal
Step 2: Largely maintain the status quo
Step 3: Miss goal
Step 4: Set new goal

The historical pattern holds true with past agreements struck in Rio, Kyoto and Copenhagen. To meet the Paris target and the federal government’s revised target unveiled this summer, considerable change is necessary.

The federal government released its plan for how emissions could be cut in the next decade to meet the original 2030 goal of a 30 per cent reduction compared with 2005 levels. Citing a combination of current policies — such as the escalating carbon tax, the coal phaseout and the Clean Fuel Standard — with industry trends such as energy-efficiency improvements, the country would be able to lower its emissions by about 200 million tonnes.

The pandemic’s hit to global employment is much worse than anticipated

Financial Post/Bloomberg News

The number of working hours lost due to the COVID-19 crisis will be “significantly higher” than projected just a few months ago, according to the International Labor Organization.

In what it termed a “dramatic revision,” the Geneva-based group now estimates that global hours worked this year will be 4.3 per cent below their pre-pandemic level, the equivalent of 125 million full-time jobs. Africa, the Americas and Arab States were the regions that experienced the biggest declines.

“A two-speed recovery between developed and developing nations threatens the global economy,” said the ILO, which had forecast a loss of 3.5 per cent in June. “This great divergence is largely driven by the major differences in the roll-out of vaccinations and fiscal stimulus packages.”

The organization cited estimates showing that a full-time job was added to the global labour market for every 14 people fully vaccinated.

Niagara COVID-19 statistics tracker