Think-tank calls Atlantic Canada's economic performance soft so far in 2014
HALIFAX ` A think-tank is describing Atlantic Canada`s economic performance so far this year as weak.
The Atlantic Provinces Economic Council says a variety of economic conditions, including labour markets, retail spending and new home construction, have fared poorly across the region in 2014.
There were 2,300 more Nova Scotians looking for work in July than the previous month, Statistics Canada says.
The number of unemployed workers in the province climbed to 44,700 last month, according to seasonally adjusted figures released Friday. That`s a 5.4 per cent hike from June, when there were 42,400 people looking for work in Nova Scotia.
MONCTON, NEW BRUNSWICK`(Marketwired ` Aug. 11, 2014) - Housing starts in New Brunswick were trending at 1,850 units in July compared to 1,338 in June according to Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC). The trend is a six month moving average of the monthly seasonally adjusted annual rates (SAAR)[sup](1)[/sup] of housing starts.
`Residential construction activity in New Brunswick`s urban centres trended significantly higher in July due to a surge in multiple starts including, most notably, a sharp increase in apartment starts in the Moncton CMA,` said Claude Gautreau, CMHC`s Senior Market Analyst for New Brunswick. `In terms of single-detached homes, the actual number of starts for the month was virtually unchanged from the level observed during the same period last year,` added Gautreau.
Think-tank calls Atlantic Canada's economic performance soft so far in 2014
HALIFAX - A slowdown in employment, retail sales and general exports has contributed to a weak overall economic performance in Atlantic Canada during the first half of 2014, says a new report released by a Halifax-based think-tank.
But despite a lacklustre start to the year, the Atlantic Provinces Economic Council said Wednesday that an abundance of major capital projects should help turn around the region's economy.
Included in that list of projects are plans to build the next generation of warships in Halifax, construction on the city's new convention centre, energy pipelines and possible shale gas exploration in New Brunswick, and Newfoundland and Labrador's work on Muskrat Falls and the Maritime Link.
Housing starts, sales expected to slump in Atlantic Canada
A slow economy and an associated exodus west are having a profound impact on regional housing starts, says Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp.
`A slowdown in economic growth and continuing negative net-migration will result in lower demand for housing leading to fewer housing starts and sales in Atlantic Canada in 2014 and 2015,` Alex MacDonald, regional economist with CMHC`s Atlantic Business Centre, said Wednesday.
SAINT JOHN (GNB) ` A Vancouver-based information technology company is opening a strategic sales and development centre in Saint John, creating 63 full-time jobs.
Premier David Alward made the announcement today with Appnovation Technologies Inc. CEO Arnold Leung.