July 2011 Alberta Economic Fundamentals

[Ally]

Condo woes plague Alberta residents




The mould was a sign. The cracked stucco was ominous. But when water started to seep inside her Calgary apartment, Tracy Hryhoruk knew she had a serious problem.




More than a decade after developers raced to meet rising demand for condos in Alberta, shoddy construction is being blamed for an increasing number of woes that have sprung up in several cities.




And that means frustrated condo owners like Hryhoruk are facing massive repair bills and getting little help.




`It`s hurt people severely in so many different ways ` not just in money. Couples have gotten divorced, people are filing bankruptcy,` she said Friday. `Our unit was getting soaked with water every time it rained.`





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[Ally]

Great expectations for Calgary ring road




At least it looks like things are moving faster than traffic or ring road stories ever move in Calgary.




On the weekend, this page says the province and the Tsuu T`ina are in ring road talks.




By Tuesday, Luke Ouellette, the province`s transportation minister, says he hopes his officials have a reworded ring road deal ready to look at as early as sometime this week.




`I`ve told my officials to sit down with their officials and make sure the nigglies they didn`t like are looked after,` says Ouellette.




`We respect everything they want and we will show them that the deal, no matter how the wording is, they`re going to get what the deal is saying ` same dollars, same hectares, same everything.





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[Ally]

Oil markets face production shortfall in second half




The International Energy Agency may not have a solution but no one can accuse them of no longer understanding the gravity of the problem.




In their June report, the IEA warned that unless OPEC could increase production by at least 1.5 million barrels a day, world oil demand is going to surpass available supply during the second half of the year.





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[Ally]

Let foreign workers stay, Alberta urges




EDMONTON ` With another boom just around the corner, it`s time to shift away from reliance on temporary foreign workers and concentrate on immigration, says Thomas Lukaszuk, Alberta`s minister of immigration and employment.




Lukaszuk is ready to push the federal government to allow more immigrants from among the 30,000 temporary workers now in the province, offering them a chance to settle with their families.





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[Ally]

Alberta will export more oil upgrading jobs than premier promised




EDMONTON ` Government projections show the percentage of the province`s bitumen upgraded by Albertans will plunge as low as 50 per cent in coming years, shattering Premier Ed Stelmach`s five-year-old promise to keep upgrading jobs at home.




Estimates from Alberta`s Energy Resources Conservation Board show the percentage of oilsands bitumen upgraded here will plummet to 52 per cent by 2016, dramatically lower than the 72 per cent target Stelmach pledged the province would achieve by that same year.




`Shipping raw bitumen is like scraping off the topsoil, selling it and then passing the farm onto the next generation,` Stelmach said in 2006 when he was running for leadership of the Conservative party. `What value does it have?`





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[Ally]

Alberta oil jobs flowing away as bitumen processed out-of-country





Government projections show the percentage of the province`s bitumen upgraded by Albertans will plunge as low as 50 per cent in coming years, shattering Premier Ed Stelmach`s five-year-old promise to keep upgrading jobs at home.




Estimates from Alberta`s Energy Resources Conservation Board show the percentage of oilsands bitumen upgraded here will plummet to 52 per cent by 2016, dramatically lower than the 72 per cent target Stelmach pledged the province would achieve by that same year.




`Shipping raw bitumen is like scraping off the topsoil, selling it and then passing the farm on to the next generation,` Stelmach said in 2006 when he was running for leadership of the Conservative party. `What value does it have?`






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[Ally]

Albertans riding high on strong economy: RBC Canadian consumer outlook





TORONTO, July 20, 2011 /CNW/ - Albertans are faring better than most of the country when it comes to rising food and gas prices, with only 37 per cent saying these costs have had a significant effect on their budgets - compared to the national average of 45 per cent - according to the RBC Canadian Consumer Outlook Index (RBC CCO). In fact, over the next year, nearly half (47 per cent) of Albertans expect their personal financial situation to improve and plan to spend more on major purchases (29 per cent).




Still, Alberta residents say they are taking steps to cope with these price increases; they plan to comparison shop more often (55 per cent), follow a budget more closely (50 per cent) and use their vehicle less often (31 per cent).




"Albertans are enjoying the benefits of a strong provincial economy, but need to be mindful of other household budgetary pressures," said Bruce MacKenzie, regional president, Alberta and the Territories, RBC. "A good financial plan can help Albertans build their savings and investments while they manage day-to-day expenses."





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[Ally]

China's CNOOC buys Calgary-based oilsands developer




BEIJING - Chinese oil giant CNOOC has agreed to take over Calgary-based oilsands developer Opti Canada for about $2.1 billion, the companies said Wednesday, as China moves to secure more resources in North America.




State-run CNOOC said its subsidiary CNOOC Luxembourg would make the acquisition, which is still subject to approval from Chinese and Canadian regulators. They expect the deal to be finalised in the fourth quarter.




"We are pleased to expand our presence in the oil sands business after our successful investment in MEG," CNOOC chief executive Yang Hua said in a statement, referring to the 2005 purchase of a 17 per cent stake in Canadian oilsands firm MEG Energy.





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[Ally]

Ministers vow to boost Canada's energy exports, ease regulation




KANANASKIS VILLAGE ` Canada`s energy ministers pledged Tuesday to make the country a global energy superpower by growing international markets in the face of heightened political pressure to clean up energy supply and criticism Alberta is exporting jobs south with each new barrel of bitumen produced.




Federal, provincial and territorial governments wrapped up four days of meetings promising to collaborate on a national energy approach ` a broad, market-focused plan released at the conclusion of an annual energy and mines ministers conference.




Ministers from Ontario and British Columbia were absent from discussions.





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[Ally]

Consumers cope as prices rise




Canadians are digging in and watching their pennies, finding new ` and old ` ways to cope as the country`s highest inflation rate in eight years smacks up against record consumer debt levels.




According to the RBC Canadian Consumer Outlook Index, released Wednesday, Canadians are carrying an average $13,058 in personal debt ` not including mortgages ` and the number who feel they`re managing that debt well is falling ` down to 30% in this quarter, compared to 38% in the last quarter.




The latest consumer price index from Statistics Canada showed the inflation rate hit an eight-year high of 3.7% in May, driven by a 29.5% jump in the price of gasoline and a 4.2% increase in food prices. The economy is currently in a sluggish state ` economists are projecting growth of around one per cent in the second quarter `which means incomes are unlikely to keep up with inflation, putting many Canadians firmly in the position of having to make do with less.





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[Ally]

Alberta leading Canada in new auto sales





CALGARY ` Alberta consumers led Canada in new auto sales last month after trailing behind Saskatchewan and Manitoba all year, racking up a 13 per cent increase year-over-year for car purchases for June.




The increase is in stark contrast to June 2009 when Alberta, struggling with low oil prices and a global economic recession, had the lowest new car sales in the county.




Strong commodity prices and a steady economic recovery have put optimism and bucks back into the hands of Alberta ` and Canadian ` consumers.






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[Ally]

Industry sponsorship of ministerial conference throws gasoline on a simmering fire





Talk about providing fuel for your enemies. Clearly, the Alberta government doesn't understand optics. How else to explain why the wealthiest province in Canada sought out industry sponsors for the Energy and Mines Ministers' Conference in Kananaskis that started on Saturday and ended Tuesday?




It was Alberta's turn to host the annual federalprovincial government conference and as is Alberta's way, it just had to show how different and entrepreneurial it is by getting industry to pick up some of the costs. But what it really showed more than anything is just how utterly tone-deaf Ed Stelmach's government is to the cacophonous, unfair and often-effective campaigns launched by environmental groups against Alberta's primary industry - oil and gas.






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[Ally]

'Historic' deal ties wages to oil prices




As Alberta heads towards another labour crunch, construction trades and companies with industrial projects in the province have reached a "historic" deal - one that includes tying wages to the price of oil and the consumer price index.




It's a move that should offer stability for any big projects on the books and mitigate the bumpy labour ride often seen in Alberta's roller-coaster economy, industry watchers say.




"You can't plan projects without cost certainty," ATB Financial economist Dan Sumner points out. "And labour is a huge part of the cost structure for construction.




"It's just about being able to make long-term plans."




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[Ally]

Damages from severe weather push up Alberta rates for home insurance




EDMONTON - Albertans are paying more to insure their homes because of greater risk of severe weather, says the Insurance Bureau of Canada.




`There appears to be a general trend of increased premiums across the province and, no doubt, these would be related to the overall weather-related risk,` Mark Klein, spokesman for the national insurance industry trade association said Wednesday.




Insurance companies are also placing more restrictions or limitations on water-damage claims, he said.




`One of the things we`re seeing is that water is the new fire. Whereas in previous years, fire was the primary cause of damage that we`re seeing in insurance claims, now it`s coming from floods and water.`





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[Ally]

Oilsands faces tougher scutiny




Ottawa is set to announce a comprehensive environmental monitoring plan for the oilsands that will boost tests on water, air, animals and plants - and seeks to spruce up the international reputation of the massive bitumen resource.




Government sources say the $50-million "integrated oilsands environment monitoring plan" developed by teams of scientists will increase scrutiny of everything from acidification in lakes to the health of fish - across provincial and territorial boundaries.




Federal Environment Minister Peter Kent is expected to outline the plan during a news conference on Thursday.





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[Ally]

Oil up near US$118 on Europe debt agreement





Oil was up near $118 on Friday, supported by Europe's latest agreement to bail out Greece, but weak economic data from China, the world's second-largest oil consumer, weighed on sentiment and the ongoing U.S. Budget crisis hit U.S. crude.







The Brent futures contract for September was up 20 cents at $117.71 a barrel by 1400 GMT, off an earlier high of $118.35. U.S. crude was down 25 cents at $98.88 a barrel, but had traded as low as $98.43.







Analysts and traders said the preliminary solution to the euro zone debt crisis presented in Brussels on Thursday was still providing some support for Brent, but ongoing wrangling over the U.S. debt ceiling was impinging on U.S. crude.




Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Oilsands faces tougher scrutiny




Ottawa is set to announce a comprehensive environmental monitoring plan for the oilsands that will boost tests on water, air, animals and plants - and seeks to spruce up the international reputation of the massive bitumen resource.




Government sources say the $50-million "integrated oilsands environment monitoring plan" developed by teams of scientists will increase scrutiny of everything from acidification in lakes to the health of fish - across provincial and territorial boundaries.




Federal Environment Minister Peter Kent is expected to outline the plan during a news conference on Thursday.





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Toronto-based Dundee buys four Edmonton office buildings




EDMONTON ` Dundee Real Estate Investment Trust (D.UN:TSX) said it will buy 29 office properties, including four downtown Edmonton buildings, from affiliates of Blackstone Real Estate Advisors LP and Slate Properties for $831.8 million.




The Edmonton buildings are the Baker Centre, 10025 106th St.; the Milner Building, 10040 104th St.; the HSBC Building, 10055 106th St.; and Highfield Place, 10010 106th St.




The Edmonton buildings total 545,549 square feet.





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[Ally]

Partial Kearl module arrives in Edmonton from U.S.



EDMONTON ` After being stuck in Idaho`s inland port for months, the first South Korean-built module destined for Imperial`s $10.9-billion Kearl oilsands project has arrived in Edmonton ` or at least half of it has.




The half-unit is part of 33 large modules at the heart of a court battle in Montana over the use of scenic portions of Highway 12. Imperial Oil (IMO:TSXhttp://http://www.financialpost.com/markets/company/index.html?symbol=IMO&id=98140) may have to spend $500,000 each to break the modules into easier-to-ship units that can travel on other routes.




`This is the first one to arrive, and we have no further plans to bring any more in at this point,` Imperial spokesperson Laura Bishop said of the test run.





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[Ally]

Edmonton inflations slows, StatsCan says





EDMONTON - The rate of inflation for Edmonton slowed in June, Statistics Canada says.




The federal agency reported Friday that consumer prices rose 2.4 per cent in the Edmonton census metropolitan area and by 2.1 per cent in Alberta in the 12 months to June.




Both rates were down compared with May, when prices rose 3.0 per cent in Edmonton and 2.8 per cent in Alberta.





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