July 2011 Alberta Economic Fundamentals

[Ally]

Ottawa seeks 'fact's on oil sands




The war between proponents and critics of the oil sands has, to a great extent, been a war over conflicting facts on environmental impact.




The oil industry, on one hand, claims it's making great strides in reducing its impact on air, land and water on a per-barrel basis as its technology improves.




The environmental community claims oil from the deposits is the dirtiest on the planet and environmental devastation will grow as the industry expands.





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

China's CNOOC to buy Opti Canada in oil sands push






BEIJING (Reuters) - China's top offshore oil producer CNOOC Ltd (0883.HK: Quote) has agreed to buy Opti Canada Inc (OPC.TO: Quote) for $34 million in cash and take on more than $2 billion in debt in a move that will ramp up Chinese investment in Canadian oil sands.





China has been scouring the globe for energy resources to feed its fast-growing economy, but has often run into regulatory, political and procedural hurdles for such deals.





Unconventional energy sources such as shale gas, coal-bed methane and oil sands are attracting increasing attention from China and elsewhere as traditional oil supplies dwindle.





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Ottawa to lay out plans for more oilsands environmental scrutiny







Ottawa is set to announce today 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.




According to government sources, the $50-million "integrated oilsands environment monitoring plan" developed by teams of scientists will spur increased 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 lay out the plan during a news conference this morning.




Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Alberta manufacturing hitting its stride





EDMONTON, AB, July 23, 2011/ Troy Media/ ` Over the past six months no industry has added to payrolls quite like Alberta`s manufacturing sector, helping to generate some of the buzz about an impending labour shortage. Some of the manufacturing recovery should be expected now that energy investment dollars are starting to flow again, but before we get ahead of ourselves we should look a little deeper at the numbers.





It should also be stated that, even with the surge in employment, we`re still about 12,500 workers below the peak. This might seem counter-intuitive, but the industry had been hit far harder than others when the recession hit.






Manufacturing in Alberta constitutes about eight per cent of provincial GDP and seven7 per cent of overall employment, but the sector itself can be broken down again to durable (structures and items that be used over long periods) and non-durable goods (items that we expect to be consumed rather quickly). Between the two, non-durable goods accounts for about 67 per cent of manufacturing revenues generated in Alberta.





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Young buyers fuel resurgence of Calgary real estaet market





Young buyers continue to provide the fuel for the continuing resurgence of Calgary's resale housing market.




At one time between the late 1990s and the early 2000s, young people - mostly first-time buyers - accounted for something like 35 per cent of all homebuyers in and around the city.




While those statistics are no longer kept by anyone, anecdotal evidence from the Calgary Real Estate Board shows such buyers are back in the marketplace - and, in many cases, looking at condos because of the lower prices compared to single-family homes.






Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Edmonton's inflation rate slowed in June, StatsCanada says




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 in the 12 months to June and by 2.1 per cent in Alberta.




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




Nationally, Canada's annual inflation rate pulled back in June as prices for vehicles and gasoline eased, taking some pressure off the Bank of Canada to begin raising interest rates.





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Stelmach's support of arena deal essential




EDMONTON - Urban design activist Ian O'Donnell is a keen supporter of the downtown arena project, but it wasn't always so.




O'Donnell, who has lived downtown for six years and chairs the development committee for the Downtown Edmonton Community League, was disappointed in the Katz Group's initial plans, so much so that he offered a tough public critique.




But for the past 14 months, the Katz Group has consulted with O'Donnell and his group. The Katz Group's newest plan has now won them over.





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Apartment vacancy rate slowly declining





The city's apartment vacancy rate is on the decline.







The executive director with the Calgary Residential Rental Association says renewed economic optimism is attracting more people to the city.







"Well the numbers still look pretty good," Gerry Baxter tells 660News. "They've certainly come down from where they were a year ago, vacancies not as high. People I talk to tell me they're sitting at probably three per cent, maybe three-and-a-half, four per cent, in that general area."







Those numbers are down from five per cent earlier in the year, and Baxter credits an improved economic outlook.







Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Calgary to escape price correction





TD Economics has forecasted that the national average resale price will drop 10.2% over 2012 and 2013. But it looks like Calgary will escape this downward trend largely because it's already gone through much of its correction.







TD Economics predicts the city's average price will rise to $405,800 in 2012, up from $403,700 in 2011. And by 2013, TD economics projects the average price will reach $410,500.







That's 1.7% increase in the average home value at the same time house prices in Vancouver are expected to drop 14.8% from its peak.







Calgary stands to gain even in the coming housing downturn because of its sound economic fundamentals. TD Economics expects crude oil to remain between $95 and $100 a barrel, a price at which energy companies can continue to make large profits and hire plenty more workers.







Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Alleged ringleader in $12-million mortgage fraud ordered to stand trial





CALGARY ` The alleged ringleader of a $12 million mortgage fraud involving 22 Calgary properties was ordered to stand trial last week on more than a dozen charges.




Ali El-Sayed, 32, consented to being committed for trial after provincial court Judge Harry Van Harten heard just one week of evidence called by Crown prosecutor Brian Kiers in the scheduled four-week preliminary hearing.




El-Sayed was charged last August in what police said at the time was the latest large-scale mortgage fraud in the Calgary area uncovered by police, one in which none of the money pocketed by the culprits has been recovered.






Read the full article here.