February 2013 Alberta Economic Fundamentals

[Ally]

Edmonton councillors vote to relaunch expropriation effort at city centre airport




EDMONTON - City council voted Wednesday to restart expropriation efforts at City Centre Airport, one step toward closing the facility and building a neighbourhood.




The city`s first expropriation bid ground to a halt in December after lawyers for the companies leasing space at the airport took the city to court. They successfully argued the first hearing officer appointed by the province had a conflict of interest because of statements he made.





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[Ally]

Alberta retail sales hit $5.7 billion in December




CALGARY ` Retail sales in Alberta increased by 1.9 per cent in December compared with a year ago to $5.7 billion, according to Statistics Canada.




Meanwhile, the federal agency also reported Friday that Canadian retail sales dipped to $38.6 billion or by 0.7 per cent from December 2011.





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[Ally]

Calgary and area average house price jumps 108% over 10 years




CALGARY ` Calgary`s residential housing market is poised for expansion in 2013, with move-up buyers set to lead the charge, says a report released Thursday by RE/MAX.




The report said the 10-year appreciation in average house prices for residential properties in the city and area was 108 per cent going from $198,350 in 2002 to $412,315 last year.





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[Ally]

Calgary listed as one of the most affordable housing markets in Canada




CALGARY ` Calgary experienced a housing market renaissance in 2012, reaping the benefits of strong provincial GDP and in-migration, which propelled home resales in the area, says a report released Monday by RBC Economics Research.




The latest Housing Trends and Affordability Report listed Calgary as one of the more affordable housing markets in Canada.





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[Ally]

Calgary commercial real estate sales top $4.8 billion in 2012




CALGARY ` The Greater Calgary real estate market accelerated its recovery from 2009, climbing by 81 per cent in terms of overall investment dollar volume in 2012 from the previous year, says a report by RealNet Canada.




The real estate information services company said there were 445 transactions over $1 million during the year totalling $4.84 billion.





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[Ally]

Alberta auto sales buck national trend




CALGARY ` Auto sales in Alberta bucked a national trend in January.




While sales fell across Canada during the month compared with last year, in Alberta they showed a 4.1 per cent year-over-year hike, according to the latest report by DesRosiers Automotive Consultants Inc.





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[Ally]

Alberta continues to grow




Over the past year, there has been a lot of concern over the declining returns on Alberta oil and particularly bitumen prices.




The impacts of corporate decision-making and factors in cancelling or pushing back the start of many upgraders that had been previously announced for Alberta`s Industrial Heartland are becoming increasingly apparent.





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[Ally]

Second carbon capture plug pulled




EDMONTON ` Another company has pulled the plug on one of the Alberta government`s high-profile projects to capture and store carbon created by the energy industry.




Swan Hills Synfuels and the province announced Monday that they will discontinue a $285-million funding agreement that would have seen underground coal converted to gas and then burned to generate electricity.





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[Ally]

Highest average weekly earnings in Alberta




CALGARY ` Average weekly earnings of non-farm payroll employees in Alberta remained the highest of all provinces in the country in December, according to Statistics Canada.




The federal agency reported Tuesday that earnings in the province were $1,093.58, up 1.2 per cent from the previous month and an increase of 4.2 per cent from December 2011.





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[Ally]

Opportunity lost? Alberta facing short and long term financial challenges, despite its oil wealth




The economy in Alberta is booming`investment in its energy sector is skyrocketing, labour shortages abound, and its wages are growing much faster than the national average. But scratch the surface of Alberta`s boom and one quickly realizes that the province is grappling with significant challenges. In the short-term, the considerable discount on heavy Canadian crude oil prices has led to a marked drop in provincial royalty revenues and has the potential to curtail energy-related investment in the province. Furthermore, the issue on how wealth generated from extracting non-renewable resources will be shared with future generations remains unsettled. Finally, despite the fact that its economy is doing well, Canada`s richest province is facing a $4 billion budget deficit`a clear indication that now is the time to rethink Alberta`s fiscal framework.





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[Ally]

Calgary housing market experiencing positive momentum




CALGARY ` Calgary`s housing market is experiencing positive momentum and is a `lone shining

star` in the Western Canadian real estate market, according to a report by TD Economics.




In the first edition of its Metro Beat, reviewing economic trends on a quarterly basis, TD called Calgary`s situation ideal in comparison to what`s happening in Vancouver with the resale housing market seeing sales decrease there by 26 per cent in 2012.





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[Ally]

Calgary region housing starts to fall




CALGARY ` Short and long-term expectations for housing starts in the Calgary region are negative, according to the Conference Board of Canada.




In releasing its Metropolitan Housing Starts update on Wednesday, the board said the seasonally-adjusted annual rate for starts in the Calgary census metropolitan area was 11,892 in January, down from 13,184 a year ago.





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