September 2009
- Thread starter Ally
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- Oct 12, 2007
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- 586
Logging contractors lose financial backing
Loans called for up to 35 coast operators after financier goes into receivership
Up to 35 contract loggers on the B.C. coast are having their loans called now that Nanaimo financier Forest & Marine Group has gone into receivership.
"There`s going to be a lot of forced liquidations," said Kevin Mason, investment analyst at Equity Research Associates. "People are going to be scrambling around looking for alternatives."
But there`s nowhere else for coastal logging companies to turn. Logging is almost at a standstill and financiers are generally saying they want more security — specifically a guaranteed fibre supply — before they will loan money to the industry, Mason said. Contract loggers generally cut timber for major licensees or the B.C. government`s own timber sales program and do not have a guaranteed fibre supply.
Forest & Marine was considered the financier of last resort for the cash-strapped coastal logging industry. It was founded in 1983, in the depths of a severe province-wide recession. But this time, the downturn has proven too much for it to weather without financing of its own, said Forest & Marine president David Hitchcock. He said Monday that court-appointed receiver Bowra Group is now running the company and is in the process of winding it down.
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Loans called for up to 35 coast operators after financier goes into receivership
Up to 35 contract loggers on the B.C. coast are having their loans called now that Nanaimo financier Forest & Marine Group has gone into receivership.
"There`s going to be a lot of forced liquidations," said Kevin Mason, investment analyst at Equity Research Associates. "People are going to be scrambling around looking for alternatives."
But there`s nowhere else for coastal logging companies to turn. Logging is almost at a standstill and financiers are generally saying they want more security — specifically a guaranteed fibre supply — before they will loan money to the industry, Mason said. Contract loggers generally cut timber for major licensees or the B.C. government`s own timber sales program and do not have a guaranteed fibre supply.
Forest & Marine was considered the financier of last resort for the cash-strapped coastal logging industry. It was founded in 1983, in the depths of a severe province-wide recession. But this time, the downturn has proven too much for it to weather without financing of its own, said Forest & Marine president David Hitchcock. He said Monday that court-appointed receiver Bowra Group is now running the company and is in the process of winding it down.
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B.C. real estate on an upward climb for the rest of `09
Home purchases have doubled since January`s near collapse, says economist
VANCOUVER — Spurred by record-low mortgage rates, provincial real estate sales should continue to rise through the remainder of 2009 from last year`s market fall, according to the B.C. Real Estate Association`s latest forecast.
Home sales have doubled since January`s near collapse in sales, association chief economist Cameron Muir said in a news release. He expects transactions recorded through the Multiple Listing Service to climb some 15 per cent from 2008 to 79,400 units.
Prices, although edging up from their declines through the last half of 2008, will remain below last year`s levels before showing slight gains again in 2010, according to Muir`s forecast.
The provincial average price for a home of $451,200 will be one per cent below the 2008 level, and should show a one-per-cent gain to $457,600 in 2010.
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Home purchases have doubled since January`s near collapse, says economist
VANCOUVER — Spurred by record-low mortgage rates, provincial real estate sales should continue to rise through the remainder of 2009 from last year`s market fall, according to the B.C. Real Estate Association`s latest forecast.
Home sales have doubled since January`s near collapse in sales, association chief economist Cameron Muir said in a news release. He expects transactions recorded through the Multiple Listing Service to climb some 15 per cent from 2008 to 79,400 units.
Prices, although edging up from their declines through the last half of 2008, will remain below last year`s levels before showing slight gains again in 2010, according to Muir`s forecast.
The provincial average price for a home of $451,200 will be one per cent below the 2008 level, and should show a one-per-cent gain to $457,600 in 2010.
read full article here
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`Worst` of housing prices decline behind us, say economists
OTTAWA — The worst is over for North America`s beleaguered housing markets, with a steady stream of data out of Canada and the U.S. indicating the recovery is at hand, economists say.
"A similar pattern in both countries is unmistakenly suggesting we`ve not only bottomed in housing, but we`re on the way back up," said TD Bank chief economist Don Drummond.
Canada`s already brightening picture was helped along Wednesday by a report showing housing prices in major markets across the country jumped 1.5 per cent in June, building on May`s two per cent advance.
The rebound in prices was evident even in most of Canada`s hardest hit urban markets, like Toronto and Vancouver, the Teranet-National Bank report showed.
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OTTAWA — The worst is over for North America`s beleaguered housing markets, with a steady stream of data out of Canada and the U.S. indicating the recovery is at hand, economists say.
"A similar pattern in both countries is unmistakenly suggesting we`ve not only bottomed in housing, but we`re on the way back up," said TD Bank chief economist Don Drummond.
Canada`s already brightening picture was helped along Wednesday by a report showing housing prices in major markets across the country jumped 1.5 per cent in June, building on May`s two per cent advance.
The rebound in prices was evident even in most of Canada`s hardest hit urban markets, like Toronto and Vancouver, the Teranet-National Bank report showed.
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Canadian Forest, Paper and Packaging Suffer huge losses in Q2
VANCOUVER — Canadian forest, paper and packaging companies lost a total of $660 million in the second quarter of 2009 while their American counterparts, buoyed by $1 billion in fuel tax credits, posted an $839-million profit, according to a PricewaterhouseCoopers report.
PwC`s quarterly earning review of the forest sector shows the global downturn, weak commodity prices, and low demand hit Canadian companies hard.
"Industry curtailments created sporadic demand for some products, but not enough to sustain recovery," the report states.
By contrast, a U.S. subsidy to companies for using black liquor, a byproduct of the pulping process, as an alternative fuel injected $1 billion into the American forest sector over the second quarter. They reported lower net sales than during the same quarter of 2008.
"The subsidy really tilts the playing field to the advantage of the U.S. producers," said Craig Campbell, the leader of PwC`s forest, paper and packaging practice. "If you`re competing against another mill that has 25 per cent cost advantage then you`re not going to have a good chance of survival."
Read the full article here.
VANCOUVER — Canadian forest, paper and packaging companies lost a total of $660 million in the second quarter of 2009 while their American counterparts, buoyed by $1 billion in fuel tax credits, posted an $839-million profit, according to a PricewaterhouseCoopers report.
PwC`s quarterly earning review of the forest sector shows the global downturn, weak commodity prices, and low demand hit Canadian companies hard.
"Industry curtailments created sporadic demand for some products, but not enough to sustain recovery," the report states.
By contrast, a U.S. subsidy to companies for using black liquor, a byproduct of the pulping process, as an alternative fuel injected $1 billion into the American forest sector over the second quarter. They reported lower net sales than during the same quarter of 2008.
"The subsidy really tilts the playing field to the advantage of the U.S. producers," said Craig Campbell, the leader of PwC`s forest, paper and packaging practice. "If you`re competing against another mill that has 25 per cent cost advantage then you`re not going to have a good chance of survival."
Read the full article here.
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- Mar 24, 2009
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Resource Revenues take Billion-Dollar bite out of Provincial Budget
You don`t have to look far in the 2009 budget to find the reason for a $2.8 billion deficit: Government revenues have plummeted. Resource revenues fell by $1 billion, accounting for half the $2 billion drop in overall revenues.
Declining revenues from corporate and personal taxes – much of that the result of shuttered forest companies and laid-off workers say budget critics – account for the rest.
And you don`t have to look far to find out where the government is cutting back expenditures: To maintain core services like health care and education, spending cuts will not be across the board. The forests ministry alone is facing a 12 per cent cut, Expenditures in forestry research and development and to help stabilize the province`s hard-hit resource towns are also down 12 per cent.
Spending in the environment ministry is down 10 per cent while spending in community and rural development is down 21 per cent.
Read the full article here.
You don`t have to look far in the 2009 budget to find the reason for a $2.8 billion deficit: Government revenues have plummeted. Resource revenues fell by $1 billion, accounting for half the $2 billion drop in overall revenues.
Declining revenues from corporate and personal taxes – much of that the result of shuttered forest companies and laid-off workers say budget critics – account for the rest.
And you don`t have to look far to find out where the government is cutting back expenditures: To maintain core services like health care and education, spending cuts will not be across the board. The forests ministry alone is facing a 12 per cent cut, Expenditures in forestry research and development and to help stabilize the province`s hard-hit resource towns are also down 12 per cent.
Spending in the environment ministry is down 10 per cent while spending in community and rural development is down 21 per cent.
Read the full article here.
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BC Risks Losing $1B in Federal Cash
Municipal leaders say B.C. communities are in danger of losing out on more than a billion dollars in much-needed infrastructure spending because the province is refusing to ante up its share of the funding.
The money — part of a federal stimulus package designed to jumpstart the national economy — has remained largely untouched in British Columbia, with less than 25 per cent of the estimated $1.04 billion in available matching federal-provincial funding committed to projects so far.
That means communities eager to repair the roof at the local hockey arena, patch up bumpy roads or improve the sewage system have been forced to sideline their requests, as thousands of potential jobs go unfilled, said Robert Hobson, a Kelowna councillor and president of the Union of British Columbian Municipalities.
"The ball is squarely in the province`s court at this point. We all know the situation," Hobson said.
Provincial officials, meanwhile, say they are working hard to find a way to match federal dollars in a year dominated by a dramatic economic decline.
"It`s a matter of trying to sort out the dollars we can invest in tough times and our intent to capitalize on as many (infrastructure projects) as possible and fit that within a framework of creating budget which, in fact, saw significant change from February," said Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure Shirley Bond.
Read the full article here.
Municipal leaders say B.C. communities are in danger of losing out on more than a billion dollars in much-needed infrastructure spending because the province is refusing to ante up its share of the funding.
The money — part of a federal stimulus package designed to jumpstart the national economy — has remained largely untouched in British Columbia, with less than 25 per cent of the estimated $1.04 billion in available matching federal-provincial funding committed to projects so far.
That means communities eager to repair the roof at the local hockey arena, patch up bumpy roads or improve the sewage system have been forced to sideline their requests, as thousands of potential jobs go unfilled, said Robert Hobson, a Kelowna councillor and president of the Union of British Columbian Municipalities.
"The ball is squarely in the province`s court at this point. We all know the situation," Hobson said.
Provincial officials, meanwhile, say they are working hard to find a way to match federal dollars in a year dominated by a dramatic economic decline.
"It`s a matter of trying to sort out the dollars we can invest in tough times and our intent to capitalize on as many (infrastructure projects) as possible and fit that within a framework of creating budget which, in fact, saw significant change from February," said Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure Shirley Bond.
Read the full article here.
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- Mar 24, 2009
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Vancouver Home Sales up 117% in August, Compared to One Year Ago
Vancouver led the nation with a whopping 117 per cent increase in home sales in August compared to August a year ago.
According to statistics released by The Canadian Real Estate Association, a total of 42,483 homes traded hands across Canada via the Multiple Listing Service Systems in August 2009.
This represents an increase of 18.5 per cent from the same month last year, and the third consecutive year-over-year gain of more than 15 per cent, according to the news release.
Sales were 6.6 per cent below the record for the month of August set in 2007.
Year-over-year gains in Vancouver (117 per cent), Toronto (27 per cent), Calgary (17 per cent) and
Montreal (nine per cent) contributed most to the national increase in activity.
Aggregate MLS home sales activity for 25 major markets posted the third consecutive increase from year-ago levels of more than 20 per cent in August.
Read the full article here.
Vancouver led the nation with a whopping 117 per cent increase in home sales in August compared to August a year ago.
According to statistics released by The Canadian Real Estate Association, a total of 42,483 homes traded hands across Canada via the Multiple Listing Service Systems in August 2009.
This represents an increase of 18.5 per cent from the same month last year, and the third consecutive year-over-year gain of more than 15 per cent, according to the news release.
Sales were 6.6 per cent below the record for the month of August set in 2007.
Year-over-year gains in Vancouver (117 per cent), Toronto (27 per cent), Calgary (17 per cent) and
Montreal (nine per cent) contributed most to the national increase in activity.
Aggregate MLS home sales activity for 25 major markets posted the third consecutive increase from year-ago levels of more than 20 per cent in August.
Read the full article here.
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- Mar 24, 2009
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Province, Fed Announce Funding for Projects worth $719 Million
Municipalities will be getting at least part of the $1 billion in infrastructure funding they feared would be lost as the province seemed reluctant to ante up its share of the money.
The funds were to come from the federal government`s $4-billion Infrastructure Stimulus Fund aimed at shovel-ready projects that could be completed by March 31, 2011. British Columbia`s share, when combined with necessary provincial matching grants, would amount to about $1.04 billion, the Union of B.C. Municipalities estimated.
On Thursday the federal and provincial governments, along with the UBCM, gave the green light to 174 projects across the province worth a total of $719 million and expected to create 4,600 jobs.
Just over $240 million of the funds promised by the two senior levels of government come from the infrastructure fund. Another $234 million stems from the Building Canada Fund, which targets communities with populations of less than 100,000. The remaining funds will come from the municipalities themselves.
The federal government also announced it had set aside up to $70 million out of its stimulus fund for the City of Vancouver, which was not included in Thursday`s announcement.
Read the full article here.
Municipalities will be getting at least part of the $1 billion in infrastructure funding they feared would be lost as the province seemed reluctant to ante up its share of the money.
The funds were to come from the federal government`s $4-billion Infrastructure Stimulus Fund aimed at shovel-ready projects that could be completed by March 31, 2011. British Columbia`s share, when combined with necessary provincial matching grants, would amount to about $1.04 billion, the Union of B.C. Municipalities estimated.
On Thursday the federal and provincial governments, along with the UBCM, gave the green light to 174 projects across the province worth a total of $719 million and expected to create 4,600 jobs.
Just over $240 million of the funds promised by the two senior levels of government come from the infrastructure fund. Another $234 million stems from the Building Canada Fund, which targets communities with populations of less than 100,000. The remaining funds will come from the municipalities themselves.
The federal government also announced it had set aside up to $70 million out of its stimulus fund for the City of Vancouver, which was not included in Thursday`s announcement.
Read the full article here.
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- Oct 12, 2007
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- 586
When the beetle-killed trees are gone, the real problems begin
The end of the mountain pine beetle epidemic was supposed to be good news, victory at last.
But the only blessing is the infestation is almost over. The bad news is that there was nothing left to save. After more than a decade and millions of dollars spent futilely trying to stop the spread of the ravenous pests, British Columbia`s Forests Minister Pat Bell says they are finally eating themselves out of house and home.
Compounding the natural disaster, Bell says, is the potential for an economic blow as some of the mills that depend on the bargain-priced, beetle-killed wood run out of feed stock.
That`s not likely, he argues, in part because of the cushion of harvestable timber that is being accumulated from another plague on the forest industry, the collapse of the U.S. housing market.
read full article here
The end of the mountain pine beetle epidemic was supposed to be good news, victory at last.
But the only blessing is the infestation is almost over. The bad news is that there was nothing left to save. After more than a decade and millions of dollars spent futilely trying to stop the spread of the ravenous pests, British Columbia`s Forests Minister Pat Bell says they are finally eating themselves out of house and home.
Compounding the natural disaster, Bell says, is the potential for an economic blow as some of the mills that depend on the bargain-priced, beetle-killed wood run out of feed stock.
That`s not likely, he argues, in part because of the cushion of harvestable timber that is being accumulated from another plague on the forest industry, the collapse of the U.S. housing market.
read full article here
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- Oct 12, 2007
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- 586
Natural gas is the key to B.C.`s future prosperity
As we officially recognized Oil and Gas Week in British Columbia this month, it is important to acknowledge the contribution that clean-burning natural gas makes to the province`s financial and economic well-being.
Many British Columbians are not fully aware of the growing role that natural gas plays in our economy and our standard of living, and the role it can play in improving the environment.
In fact, over the past decade, new technologies, innovative industry practices and public policy changes have positioned B.C. in the forefront of a natural gas renaissance in North America.
This renaissance is marked by an increase in continental natural gas production of nine per cent in the past two years, due exclusively to unconventional natural gas reserves. Production from these unconventional gas sources, once difficult and uneconomic to extract, has grown from 10 per cent of total production to 50 per cent.
read full article here
As we officially recognized Oil and Gas Week in British Columbia this month, it is important to acknowledge the contribution that clean-burning natural gas makes to the province`s financial and economic well-being.
Many British Columbians are not fully aware of the growing role that natural gas plays in our economy and our standard of living, and the role it can play in improving the environment.
In fact, over the past decade, new technologies, innovative industry practices and public policy changes have positioned B.C. in the forefront of a natural gas renaissance in North America.
This renaissance is marked by an increase in continental natural gas production of nine per cent in the past two years, due exclusively to unconventional natural gas reserves. Production from these unconventional gas sources, once difficult and uneconomic to extract, has grown from 10 per cent of total production to 50 per cent.
read full article here
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- Oct 12, 2007
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Retail sales to grow in B.C. next year: forecast
Households are still rebuilding their net worth after recession, says Central 1 Credit Union
Retail sales will fall 5.4 per cent in British Columbia this year before rebounding three per cent in 2010 and 5.4 per cent in 2011, Central 1 Credit Union forecast in its latest weekly briefing.
But the expected growth is still below normal levels, which averages about six per cent a year when the economy is healthy, Central 1 economist David Hobden said in an interview.
"It`s the normal state of affairs for consumption to grow over time and it`s only during a recession where that contracts usually," Hobden said.
Higher sales come from growth in population, income and employment, and a greater selection of goods and services over the long term, he said.
So increases of three per cent and 5.4 per cent over the next two years "is a fairly subdued forecast," Hobden said.
That`s because it will take a while for households to get their net worth back to where it was, and net worth affects how much people are willing to spend.
read full article here
Households are still rebuilding their net worth after recession, says Central 1 Credit Union
Retail sales will fall 5.4 per cent in British Columbia this year before rebounding three per cent in 2010 and 5.4 per cent in 2011, Central 1 Credit Union forecast in its latest weekly briefing.
But the expected growth is still below normal levels, which averages about six per cent a year when the economy is healthy, Central 1 economist David Hobden said in an interview.
"It`s the normal state of affairs for consumption to grow over time and it`s only during a recession where that contracts usually," Hobden said.
Higher sales come from growth in population, income and employment, and a greater selection of goods and services over the long term, he said.
So increases of three per cent and 5.4 per cent over the next two years "is a fairly subdued forecast," Hobden said.
That`s because it will take a while for households to get their net worth back to where it was, and net worth affects how much people are willing to spend.
read full article here