August 2011 Alberta Economic Fundamentals

[Ally]

Bucci Developments bullish on Calgary condo market





CALGARY ` A Vancouver-based developer is bullish on the Calgary residential condominium market




`We`ve totally shut down our Vancouver operations for the time being. We`ve put all our eggs in the Calgary basket,` said Mike Bucci of Bucci Developments Ltd. `Vancouver`s priced out the local market. The only way to play in the Vancouver market is with serious help from friends and family and inside scoop. But as a pure real estate play Vancouver doesn`t work right now.




`But you look to Calgary and you see one million square feet of net office absorption in a quarter. That`s a lot of bums in desks and they`ve got to sleep somewhere at night. And we`re able to buy land at well below replacement cost, especially through the foreclosure process. So we`ve done that a couple of times and construction costing is still quite cheap. So we`re able to provide a really high-end product cheaper than what`s currently available from the boom days.`






Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Alberta economic snapshot for August 22, 2011




Prices for typical consumers rose by 2.7 per cent year-over-year in July, down from the 3.1 per cent annualized advance in June, and 3.7 per cent in May. The national CPI increased in June primarily because of higher prices for gasoline and food purchased from stores.





In Alberta, annual consumer price inflation also eased up a bit, falling to a year-over-year increase of 1.9 per cent. Many of the factors that drove prices higher nationally were present in Alberta as well. Energy prices rose 14.1 per cent, and gasoline jumped by 23.0 per cent. Food prices also rose, especially fresh vegetables (+7.7 per cent) and meat (+6.5 per cent).







Helping keep overall inflation in Alberta in check were price decreases for women`s clothing (-9.0 per cent), footwear (-5.2 per cent), and purchasing and leasing of new motor vehicles (-2.7 per cent).





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Calgary region house prices forecast to rise





CALGARY ` House prices in the Calgary region are expected to rise in the next two years, according to Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp.




In a new forecast report released Wednesday, the CMHC said the annual growth rate for MLS average prices in the Calgary census metropolitan area will be 2.2 per cent in 2011 and the same amount in 2012.




The average sale price will reach $407,500 this year and $416,500 next year.




The CMHC is forecasting MLS sales in the Calgary region of 22,000 this year, which is a 4.8 per cent hike from 2010, and 22,500 in 2012 for another 2.3 per cent increase.








Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Head of Ford Canada upbeat about Calgary market





CALGARY ` The Calgary and Alberta auto industry is `on fire,` says the president and chief executive of the Ford Motor Company of Canada.




David Mondragon, who was in Calgary Wednesday to officially open the country`s first free-standing Lincoln dealership at Universal Ford Lincoln, said `the market here and the economy here is very vibrant.`




`And there`s been a lot of pent-up demand over the past few years from a commercial side as well as a retail side,` he said. `I think it`s going to continue to be strong for many years to come.






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[Ally]

Drilling rights sales hit record $2.68 B




CALGARY ` The second-largest auction of non-oilsands drilling rights this year has taken Alberta`s year-to-date total to $2.68 billion, beating the previous high of $2.39 billion in all of 2010.




Alberta Energy reported Wednesday afternoon it had raised $463 million from the sale of 286,000 hectares at $1,622 per hectare, the largest since the June 1 record single sale of $842 million.




The earlier record auction was driven by producer interest in acreage in the Kaybob area northwest of Edmonton considered prospective for the deep Duvernay shale liquids-rich gas play.





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Drilling rights record points to confidence in Alberta




Soaring producer confidence is being credited for taking Alberta's year-to-date take from oil and gas drilling rights sales to $2.68 billion, beating the previous high of $2.39 billion for all of 2010.




Strong oil and natural gas liquids prices, technological advances and the province's fiscal regime were also cited Wednesday for the unprecedented pace this year.




"There's lots of confidence in the future not only for oil, but also natural gas and natural gas liquids," said Alberta Energy Minister Ron Liepert in an interview.





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Alberta earnings top Canadian provinces





CALGARY ` Average weekly earnings in Alberta were the highest in the country among all provinces in June, according to Statistics Canada.




And the federal agency also reported Thursday that the annual growth rate here topped all the other provinces as well.




In June, average weekly earnings of non-farm payroll employees hit $1,041.45 in Alberta, an increase of 0.5 per cent from May and a hike of 5.0 per cent from June 2010.




Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Most expensive homes in Alberta? Not in Calgary



So you think housing prices in Calgary are expensive?





Well some interesting data points out there is another part of the province with even more expensive homes.





The Wood Buffalo region where Fort McMurray resides.





According to the most recent Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp., housing forecast, the average MLS sale price in the Wood Buffalo area is expected to hit $589,000 this year.





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Trade deals boost agriculture




Recent trade agreements will give Alberta farmers and ranchers better access to foreign customers, while Canada continues to negotiate other bilateral deals that could add further marketing advantages, analysts say.




In the past month a Canada-Colombia free trade agreement came into affect, with advantages for exporters of wheat and pulses, Canada has reopened a deal with Costa Rica that didn't include beef when initially signed, and Vietnam announced it is now accepting live breeding animals.




"Historically Canada wasn't as aggressive in pursuing bilaterals as some of our competitors," said Kate Stiefelmeyer, a research associate at the George Morris Centre. "We fell behind the United States and the (European Union).





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

From pulp mill to biorefinery




EDMONTON - Al Ward has a message for those who think the pulp industry is a 19th century dinosaur, destined to be obliterated in the digital age.




Think again, he says.




When the President of Alberta-Pacific Forest Industries looks out a decade or two, he sees an industry that`s likely to be utterly transformed, producing an array of high-value products from bioenergy to biochemicals.




In fact, pulp mills will no longer be called pulp mills, he says. They`ll be known as biorefineries ` the forest products industry`s equivalent of petroleum refineries.





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

U.S. report clears way for TransCanada's XL pipeline




WASHINGTON ` The U.S. State Department has found TransCanada Corp.'s Keystone XL oilsands pipeline would have "no significant impact" on natural resources along its proposed route, providing a crucial boost to the long-delayed project as the Obama administration prepares to decide its fate.







The key finding came on the release Friday of a final environmental impact study into the pipeline, which would carry up to 900,000 barrels of synthetic oilsands crude and diluted bitumen from northern Alberta to refineries on the Gulf Coast of Texas.





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Albertans expect to be among the youngest to be debt-free




CALGARY ` Albertans holding some form of debt today feel they will be debt-free by age 52 ` the youngest age in the country.




A CIBC poll, conducted by Harris-Decima and released Monday, also found that only 18 per cent of Albertans in the 45-64 age group identify themselves as being debt-free.




`Being debt-free is a long-term financial goal for many Canadians, and this poll suggests Albertans are optimistically looking ahead to the stage of life they will be in when they successfully paid down all of their debt,` said Christina Kramer, executive vice-president of retail distribution and channel strategy for the CIBC.





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Alberta buyers win as B.C. axes HST






B.C.'s harmonized sales tax has been a "disaster" for the recreational property market, critics say, and scrapping it will open the doors for buyers, many from Alberta, who have been sitting on the sidelines.




"It's going to be well received. It's going to be huge because the HST has been a real detriment to recreational properties, developed lots on lakes, secondary houses, people coming out and buying a place on the ski hill, a condo," said Philip Jones, of Royal LePage East Kootenay Realty.




"It's had a very staggering impact on our recreational market in the Okanagan and the Kootenays."




Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Alberta earnings top Canadian provinces





CALGARY ` Average weekly earnings in Alberta were the highest in the country among all provinces in June, according to Statistics Canada.




And the federal agency also reported Thursday that the annual growth rate here topped all the other provinces as well.




In June, average weekly earnings of non-farm payroll employees hit $1,041.45 in Alberta, an increase of 0.5 per cent from May and a hike of 5.0 per cent from June 2010.






Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Wealthstreet adivsor offered 'disastrous' investing advice: Alberta Securities Commission





CALGARY - A Calgary financial adviser who issued market reports on local radio and TV stations, and hosted investment seminars, breached Alberta securities laws by acting as an advisor without being registered and pressuring at least one investor to purchase securities through his company, the Alberta Securities Commission said Monday.




David Jones, sole director and shareholder of Wealthstreet Inc., illegally traded in and distributed securities of Wealthstreet, an ASC panel determined after a hearing this spring, as did former Wealthstreet president Rachel Poffenroth.




Both acted contrary to the public interest, the panel ruled.






Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

New head chosen for Calgary East Village redevelopment





CALGARY ` He has been one of the key people in charge of building the 59-storey Bow tower in the heart of downtown Calgary.




Now Michael Brown will lead the redevelopment of the East Village.




It was announced Monday that Brown has been selected as the new president and chief executive of the Calgary Municipal Land Corporation.




Brown will assume responsibilities at CMLC, the organization leading the redevelopment of East Village, on Sept 21.






Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Harvest looking good so far for Alberta farms





Alberta farmers, just starting to take crops off the fields, could be looking at above average yields and good quality when the harvest wraps up this year.




While it's early in the harvest, which again has a later start than usual after a wet spring, good summer conditions have helped along crops across the Prairies.




"Pricing markets are good, yields are good," said Alberta Agriculture's James Wright. "It's that one in five, or two in 10, sort of years where farmers actually get yield and pricing together.




Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Albertans expect to be among youngest to be debt-free





CALGARY ` Albertans holding some form of debt today feel they will be debt-free by age 52 ` the youngest age in the country.




A CIBC poll, conducted by Harris-Decima and released Monday, also found that only 18 per cent of Albertans in the 45-64 age group identify themselves as being debt-free.




`Being debt-free is a long-term financial goal for many Canadians, and this poll suggests Albertans are optimistically looking ahead to the stage of life they will be in when they successfully paid down all of their debt,` said Christina Kramer, executive vice-president of retail distribution and channel strategy for the CIBC.






Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Calgary MLS sales top last year




There`s still a few days left in this month but already MLS sales in August in Calgary have surpassed the levels of a year ago for the same month.




Next week the Calgary Real Estate Board will officially release the August monthly data. However, preliminary, unofficial data on the website of realtor Mike Fotiou, of First Place Realty, shows positive gains in the Calgary market this month.




And this despite some troubling economic news of late.





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Global economy, environment risk factors for oilsands sector: report





OTTAWA ` An uncertain global economy is just one of the factors making it difficult for oilsands companies to accurately plan and forecast their operations, while cost inflation tops the list of risks facing the industry.




The oilsands are increasingly vital to global growth, says Ernst &Young in a report, Exploring the Top 10 opportunities in risks in Canada's oilsands. It notes that the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers predicts production will grow to 2.2 million barrels a day by 2015 and 3.5 million by 2025.




That global growth, and the oilsands' increasing economic importance to Canada, are high on the list of opportunities in the sector, but ramped-up production brings downsides, including increasing labour, service and commodity expenses, which are already pushing up costs in the oilsands.






Read the full article here.