Saskatchewan Economic Fundamentals

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Sask. manufacturing sector shows growth

REGINA -- Saskatchewan manufacturers sold $953 million worth of goods in February, a gain of 0.8 per cent over the previous month, according to a Statistics Canada report released Wednesday.

Manufacturing sales in Saskatchewan were also up 9.4 per cent from February 2007, when $871 million worth of manufactured goods were sold.

http://www.canada.com/saskatoonstarphoenix...25-9f31c52b7a15

 

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We`re seeing potash turn to gold

No one is sure who first said it, but the Washington Post`s Watergate informant Deep Throat reportedly told reporters Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein to "follow the money."

In politics, as in life, it is good advice: Follow the money.

Saskatchewan`s often divisive politics have always had hard battle lines -- unions and left-wing social activists support the NDP; business and investors support parties other than the NDP, such as the governing Saskatchewan Party.

http://www.canada.com/saskatoonstarphoenix...48-f5e3d20d668b

 

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Saskatoon Tribal Council backs Station 20 funding cut

REGINA -- The Saskatchewan Party government has a high-profile supporter of its decision to kill the Station 20 West project in inner-city Saskatoon.

Chief Joe Qwewezance sent a letter to Premier Brad Wall offering the Saskatoon Tribal Council`s (STC) support for the government`s decision to pull $8 million in funding for the project that was committed by the previous NDP government last year.

http://www.canada.com/saskatoonstarphoenix...13-9c15b56479b2

 

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Saskatoon`s inflation in March leads nation

Saskatchewan led all provinces in inflation last month, Statistics Canada reported Thursday.

From March 2007 to March 2008, consumer prices rose by 3.2 per cent in the province, well ahead of the nationwide inflation rate of 1.4 per cent. Saskatchewan`s nation-leading inflation rate was due mainly to rises in gasoline prices and homeowners` costs, the report said.

http://www.canada.com/saskatoonstarphoenix...f9-18f19110cd80

 

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IRD of Saskatoon lands Mexican contract

A wholly owned subsidiary of Saskatoon`s International Road Dynamics Inc. (IRD) has been awarded a $3.7-million US contract in Mexico.

http://www.canada.com/saskatoonstarphoenix...e4-79fbb65ce011

 

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A parking lot that isn`t leads to bylaw charges

A local business is facing 44 bylaw violations.

Josef Tesar Sr. appeared in provincial court Monday regarding the infractions, which are related to parking in a vacant lot immediately west of the Belly Up Pub and Grill, which Tesar owns.

The case was adjourned to May 6.

http://www.paherald.sk.ca/index.cfm?sid=127001&sc=4

 

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Think Regina, Think prosperity

It did not seem all that unusual that we would get all four seasons of the year in one week in this place. Saskatchewan, as you know, is a Cree word that means, "If you don`t like the weather, just wait 15 minutes." Why, this week started off with temperatures well into the 20s. The next day, it dipped back down. By the end of the week, the frost was back on the pumpkin and the early morning temperatures were below zero. On Wednesday, it was a stew. There was sun, then came a swell of dark grey clouds.

http://www.canada.com/reginaleaderpost/new...1b-7d38216d4efb

 

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Renovations planned for casino

The Saskatchewan Gaming Corporation (SGC) is entertaining the idea of making a couple of improvements to Casino Regina.

"Our tag is `Always Entertaining` and to do that we need to keep the property fresh and we need to keep it exciting," explained Angela Gordon, SGC director of corporate affairs.

http://www.canada.com/reginaleaderpost/new...bd-25223650749e

 

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Record on the horizon

Regina International Airport is set to break the one-million-passenger barrier this year, after a record 962,962 passengers used the airport in 2007, the Regina Airport Authority`s annual meeting heard Thursday.

http://www.canada.com/reginaleaderpost/new...23-6b1c65ea075f

 

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Regina bucks national trend

Canada`s once-hot housing market is clearly cooling with sales falling and the number of unsold homes on the market hitting record highs in the first quarter of the year, according to a report released Thursday.

But "that`s certainly not the case in Regina,`` according to Gord Archibald, the executive officer with the Association of Regina Realtors.

http://www.canada.com/reginaleaderpost/new...56-5610ea1cc679

 

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Renters allege council conflict of interest

A handful of Saskatoon city councillors have personal interests in the local market for rental accommodations, prompting some condo conversion opponents to question the motives behind their recent decisions.

"I call that a big conflict of interest," said Martin Been, a tenant of the downtown Milroy Apartments who has taken the city to court over council`s approval of a developer`s plan to renovate and sell most of the building as high-end condos.

http://www.canada.com/saskatoonstarphoenix...76-f78b2e657633

 

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Condo changes cannot outpace housing market

From the statistics on inflation to news that housing costs more in Saskatoon than in Edmonton it is clear that the downside of the boom is beginning to threaten Saskatchewan`s economic potential.

For years, provincial and civic leaders have sold the cheap cost of doing business in this province as a primary economic development tool. That included the former government`s much-touted policy to provide households with the "cheapest bundle of utility costs in the country."

http://www.canada.com/saskatoonstarphoenix...f8-252a4545c098

 

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Investors, municipalities purchase Nipawin rail line

A group of local investors and four municipal governments have bought a railway line in the Nipawin area.

After more than a year of negotiations with the Canadian Pacific Railway mediated by the Canadian Transportation Agency (CTA), the new Torch River Rail Inc. now owns a 45-kilometre rail line, plus a historic bridge.

http://www.canada.com/saskatoonstarphoenix...d7-2ff02907ecf7

 

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Saskatoon soon to learn about Ireland success story

Are there lessons for booming, resource-rich Saskatchewan from booming Ireland, a country with virtually no natural resources at all under its soil?

The Saskatoon Regional Economic Development Authority (SREDA) is featuring the Irish story at its annual Economic Forum luncheon next Thursday. It is inviting a former Irish economic development officer who now works with IBM, a company with a huge manufacturing and IT consulting business in Ireland.

http://www.canada.com/saskatoonstarphoenix...4f-0bb5e2469859

 

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Bus service to northwest delayed

A new bus service to several remote communities in northwest Saskatchewan that was supposed to start this spring now has been delayed until fall.

Saskatchewan Transportation Company plans to run a weekly scheduled service connecting Prince Albert with La Loche, Buffalo Narrows, Ile-a-la-Crosse, Beauval and Green Lake.

The delay comes in part because of the change in government last fall.

http://www.paherald.sk.ca/index.cfm?sid=127385&sc=4

 

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Wholesale sales up

Wholesale sales in Saskatchewan rose by 19 per cent in February, as the province continued to dodge the bad economic news hitting other parts of the country.

The Saskatchewan results were part of a Statistics Canada report released Friday that said wholesale sales across the country fell by 1.8 per cent, to $42.6 billion. Declines in the auto sector were among the main reasons for the drop.

http://www.canada.com/reginaleaderpost/new...0c-4d614c25f4eb

 

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Record year for Co-op, big plans for 2008

2007 was another record year for the Meadow Lake Co-op, according to General Manager Allan Halter at the Co-op`s annual meeting on April 14.

"We have had some nice steady growth here in the last four years," he said, addressing the members in attendance.

"We did have an increase in our expenses, almost in step with our market increase. Number one was an upgrade to our Marketplace floor. We hired a full time maintenance manager. In addition to that, with the rise in sales and the improvements in facilities, there were increases in staff costs."

http://www.meadowlakeprogress.com/This%20W...ess/393982.html

 

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Building permits up in city of Melfort in 2008

Six new residential building permits were granted during the month of March this year compared to two during the same time last year.
The six new residential building permits represented $1,240,000 in value.
There was also one residential addition and alteration permit granted and one commercial addition and alteration permit granted during March.

http://www.melfortjournal.com/Front%20Page/392835.html

 

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Cumberland House residents want Highway 123 improved

After the Sask. Party announced highways in the area they plan to work on over the spring and summer months, Cumberland House residents were outraged that Highway 123 was not on the immediate list.
"It appears that we`ve been bypassed by the government," said Leonard Morin, who is with the Northeast region Métis Nation and is also a former mayor and councilor of Cumberland House.

http://www.nipawinjournal.com/News/392891.html

 

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Sorry, no news items today for Sask. I will try again tomorrow.