May 2012 Ontario Economic Fundamentals
- Thread starter Ally
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Headquarters Hamilton
Joel Auge is about to hit play on a new business in Hamilton.
The 33-year-old already runs a 23-employee company in Toronto called HitGrab, which develops online games ` think popular Facebook fantasy MouseHunt ` for social networks.
He`s ready to expand into the mobile game market in a big way, but first HitGrab`s CEO wants to expand his virtual biz physically into Hamilton.
Read the full article here.
Joel Auge is about to hit play on a new business in Hamilton.
The 33-year-old already runs a 23-employee company in Toronto called HitGrab, which develops online games ` think popular Facebook fantasy MouseHunt ` for social networks.
He`s ready to expand into the mobile game market in a big way, but first HitGrab`s CEO wants to expand his virtual biz physically into Hamilton.
Read the full article here.
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10 Waterloo companies make the Canadian best high-tech list
WATERLOO REGION ` Despite the global economic setbacks and even with the woes at Research In Motion in the past year, Waterloo Region had an `impressive` presence in this year`s Branham300 rankings of the country`s top information and communications technology companies.
The rankings once again showed Research In Motion in Waterloo, with revenues of around $20 billion in 2011, as the top revenue generator on the list of the 250 biggest Canadian-based information technology companies.
It was the third year in a row that RIM was No. 1 in revenues in its sector. BCE Inc. and Rogers Communications were in second and third place.
Read the full article here.
WATERLOO REGION ` Despite the global economic setbacks and even with the woes at Research In Motion in the past year, Waterloo Region had an `impressive` presence in this year`s Branham300 rankings of the country`s top information and communications technology companies.
The rankings once again showed Research In Motion in Waterloo, with revenues of around $20 billion in 2011, as the top revenue generator on the list of the 250 biggest Canadian-based information technology companies.
It was the third year in a row that RIM was No. 1 in revenues in its sector. BCE Inc. and Rogers Communications were in second and third place.
Read the full article here.
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Green light to spend on transit triggers $31 million contract
WATERLOO REGION ` Regional council can start spending big on rail transit, after getting the green light from senior governments.
After completing reviews of the project, the federal and provincial governments have agreed in principle to share costs incurred after April 1.
Read the full article here.
WATERLOO REGION ` Regional council can start spending big on rail transit, after getting the green light from senior governments.
After completing reviews of the project, the federal and provincial governments have agreed in principle to share costs incurred after April 1.
Read the full article here.
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York housing supply fails to meet needs
If the region is going to house nearly 500,000 people over the next 20 years, it`s going to have to grow in a way unlike
what`s been seen to date.
Housing Matters, a joint product of York`s planning and housing departments, is aimed at getting up-to-date numbers and ensuring the region is on the same page as stakeholders in the development industry, regional acting director of long-term planning Paul Bottomley said.
Read the full article here.
If the region is going to house nearly 500,000 people over the next 20 years, it`s going to have to grow in a way unlike
what`s been seen to date.
Housing Matters, a joint product of York`s planning and housing departments, is aimed at getting up-to-date numbers and ensuring the region is on the same page as stakeholders in the development industry, regional acting director of long-term planning Paul Bottomley said.
Read the full article here.
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Toyota posts April U.S. gains, GM lifts sales outlook
(Reuters) - U.S. auto sales rose 2.3 per cent in April, helped by strong gains at Toyota Motor Corp. and Chrysler Group LLC, as American shoppers looked to replace their aging cars and trucks and the broader U.S. economy showed signs of strength.
The annual sales rate in April was 14.4 million, in line with the pace projected by economists polled by Thomson Reuters. This was in line with the March rate, but down slightly from the 14.6 million pace reported in the first quarter.
Read the full article here.
(Reuters) - U.S. auto sales rose 2.3 per cent in April, helped by strong gains at Toyota Motor Corp. and Chrysler Group LLC, as American shoppers looked to replace their aging cars and trucks and the broader U.S. economy showed signs of strength.
The annual sales rate in April was 14.4 million, in line with the pace projected by economists polled by Thomson Reuters. This was in line with the March rate, but down slightly from the 14.6 million pace reported in the first quarter.
Read the full article here.
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Manufacturing conditions improved in April, reports show
Manufacturing business conditions in Canada continue to improve, according to the latest survey of purchasing managers intentions.
The RBC Canadian Purchasing Managers Index, considered a leading indicator of future business trends, rose to 53.3 in April, its highest level so far this year.
It was the third monthly gain so far this year though the index remains below last December`s level, when the index was at 54. A reading above 50 indicates more than half the purchasing managers surveyed are reporting conditions have improved.
Read the full article here.
Manufacturing business conditions in Canada continue to improve, according to the latest survey of purchasing managers intentions.
The RBC Canadian Purchasing Managers Index, considered a leading indicator of future business trends, rose to 53.3 in April, its highest level so far this year.
It was the third monthly gain so far this year though the index remains below last December`s level, when the index was at 54. A reading above 50 indicates more than half the purchasing managers surveyed are reporting conditions have improved.
Read the full article here.
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WestJet picks Bombardier plane for regional service
WestJet Airlines Ltd. (WJA-T14.74-0.01-0.07%)`s decision to order Canadian-built Bombardier Q400 turboprops will allow the carrier to enter smaller markets across Canada while diversifying the fleet beyond Boeing 737s.
Bombardier Inc. (BBD.B-T4.00-0.08-1.96%), which assembles the Q400 at its Downsview plant in Toronto, will deliver up to 45 planes to WestJet under a schedule that calls for new regional routes starting in the second half of 2013.
Read the full article here.
WestJet Airlines Ltd. (WJA-T14.74-0.01-0.07%)`s decision to order Canadian-built Bombardier Q400 turboprops will allow the carrier to enter smaller markets across Canada while diversifying the fleet beyond Boeing 737s.
Bombardier Inc. (BBD.B-T4.00-0.08-1.96%), which assembles the Q400 at its Downsview plant in Toronto, will deliver up to 45 planes to WestJet under a schedule that calls for new regional routes starting in the second half of 2013.
Read the full article here.
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WestJet selects Bombardier Q400 NextGen Airliner
As Bombardier Aerospace`s technologically advanced Q400 NextGen airliner heads to Africa on another leg of its 2012 world tour, its journey is boosted by WestJet`s announcement earlier today, that the Q400 NextGen airliner has been selected to meet the airline`s business requirement for up to 45 turboprop aircraft to launch its regional airline.
Read the full article here.
As Bombardier Aerospace`s technologically advanced Q400 NextGen airliner heads to Africa on another leg of its 2012 world tour, its journey is boosted by WestJet`s announcement earlier today, that the Q400 NextGen airliner has been selected to meet the airline`s business requirement for up to 45 turboprop aircraft to launch its regional airline.
Read the full article here.
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Waterloo Region has Canada's third strongest economy
TORONTO ` Waterloo Region seems to have its own version of black gold, according to Benjamin Tal of CIBC World Markets.
A survey released on Thursday by CIBC World Markets shows Waterloo Region had one of the strongest economies in Canada as of the third quarter of 2011.
The region ranked third in CIBC`s Canadian Metropolitan Economic Activity Index, right behind Toronto and Edmonton.
Read the full article here.
TORONTO ` Waterloo Region seems to have its own version of black gold, according to Benjamin Tal of CIBC World Markets.
A survey released on Thursday by CIBC World Markets shows Waterloo Region had one of the strongest economies in Canada as of the third quarter of 2011.
The region ranked third in CIBC`s Canadian Metropolitan Economic Activity Index, right behind Toronto and Edmonton.
Read the full article here.
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Wide disparity between Waterloo and other municipalities on licensing
Though not a direction from council, proactive fire inspections provided by Waterloo Fire Rescue for lodging house licenses were scrapped because of cost, according to one city councillor.
Coun. Scott Witmer said while he wasn`t sure who suggested removing the component in the drafting of Waterloo`s recently implemented rental housing licensing bylaw, it wasn`t city council.
Read the full article here.
Though not a direction from council, proactive fire inspections provided by Waterloo Fire Rescue for lodging house licenses were scrapped because of cost, according to one city councillor.
Coun. Scott Witmer said while he wasn`t sure who suggested removing the component in the drafting of Waterloo`s recently implemented rental housing licensing bylaw, it wasn`t city council.
Read the full article here.
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Landlord fans flames over rental bylaw inspections
Landlord Bob Jackson just can`t get the worry out of his head.
Less than a month after demanding answers from city council about the removal of a fire inspection provision from its rental housing licensing bylaw, Jackson returned to council Monday.
`What will it take for this council to come to their senses to make sure that this licensing bylaw has the same, if not better, safety inspections than the previous lodging house license?` Jackson said. `One, two, three, four deaths, how many?`
Read the full article here.
Landlord Bob Jackson just can`t get the worry out of his head.
Less than a month after demanding answers from city council about the removal of a fire inspection provision from its rental housing licensing bylaw, Jackson returned to council Monday.
`What will it take for this council to come to their senses to make sure that this licensing bylaw has the same, if not better, safety inspections than the previous lodging house license?` Jackson said. `One, two, three, four deaths, how many?`
Read the full article here.
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Torontonians: Beware the bed bugs
Torontonians may soon be experiencing more bites during the night. The City`s Board of Health considered a report, this week, on the impending loss of about $1.2-million in provincial funding for bedbug prevention and care. The money, a one-year-only disbursement that expired on March 31, enabled Toronto Public Health to hire a `bedbug team` consisting of a manager and six bedbug inspectors. In practical terms, what will this budget cut mean?
There Will Be Fewer Inspections Using the province`s money, Toronto Public Health sent inspectors into apartment buildings to investigate bedbug complaints. Inspectors would scour apartments with suspected bedbug infestations, and would also search neighbouring units to make sure the bugs weren`t spreading. (They looked at 4,719 apartments between May 2011 and March 2012.) After the team is disbanded at the end of this month, the City will have just one inspector left. TPH will only be able to investigate a handful of complaints ` and then only when they come from tenants who have identifiable mental, physical or financial problems.
Read the full article here.
Torontonians may soon be experiencing more bites during the night. The City`s Board of Health considered a report, this week, on the impending loss of about $1.2-million in provincial funding for bedbug prevention and care. The money, a one-year-only disbursement that expired on March 31, enabled Toronto Public Health to hire a `bedbug team` consisting of a manager and six bedbug inspectors. In practical terms, what will this budget cut mean?
There Will Be Fewer Inspections Using the province`s money, Toronto Public Health sent inspectors into apartment buildings to investigate bedbug complaints. Inspectors would scour apartments with suspected bedbug infestations, and would also search neighbouring units to make sure the bugs weren`t spreading. (They looked at 4,719 apartments between May 2011 and March 2012.) After the team is disbanded at the end of this month, the City will have just one inspector left. TPH will only be able to investigate a handful of complaints ` and then only when they come from tenants who have identifiable mental, physical or financial problems.
Read the full article here.
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Building Toronto's $2.6 Billion subway extension
Who says Toronto isn`t building subways? In 2008, the TTC began design and construction for six new subway stations, linking the subway to growing York University and beyond. Snaking northwest, this line brings the subway for the first time outside Toronto`s boundary into the 905. The $2.6-billion project involves hundreds of workers. The TTC vows to open the extension at the end of 2015
Read the full article here.
Who says Toronto isn`t building subways? In 2008, the TTC began design and construction for six new subway stations, linking the subway to growing York University and beyond. Snaking northwest, this line brings the subway for the first time outside Toronto`s boundary into the 905. The $2.6-billion project involves hundreds of workers. The TTC vows to open the extension at the end of 2015
Read the full article here.
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Toronto home sellers feel the urge to cash in
Say you`d been searching for a condo to buy and handed over an offer on a cool place in the Queen Street West area, only to find out that the owner rejected not just your offer but every one of the 15 others. You`d feel irked, right? And just imagine how burned you would feel if the same seller came back to the market for another round - at a higher price.
Read the full article here.
Say you`d been searching for a condo to buy and handed over an offer on a cool place in the Queen Street West area, only to find out that the owner rejected not just your offer but every one of the 15 others. You`d feel irked, right? And just imagine how burned you would feel if the same seller came back to the market for another round - at a higher price.
Read the full article here.
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Toronto home sales jump in April, prices continue to climb
Toronto`s housing market continues to be red hot, bucking the trend in other parts of the country.
The country`s largest city had 10,350 transactions in April, an 18% jump from a year ago, according to the Toronto Real Estate Board. Prices also continue to climb with the average transaction price reaching $517,556, an 8.5% jump from a year ago.
Read the full article here.
Toronto`s housing market continues to be red hot, bucking the trend in other parts of the country.
The country`s largest city had 10,350 transactions in April, an 18% jump from a year ago, according to the Toronto Real Estate Board. Prices also continue to climb with the average transaction price reaching $517,556, an 8.5% jump from a year ago.
Read the full article here.
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GTA detached home sales jump in April
Detached homes are becoming so `precious` as the GTA continues to surge skyward, it`s going to become increasingly difficult for families to find, let afford, the Holy Grail of housing ` a place that isn`t attached to the neighbour`s.
Demand is so strong for that shrinking share of the region`s housing stock, that sales of detached homes jumped 22 per cent across the GTA in April. The strong sales of those higher-priced homes helped push up the average price of homes (including condos, semis and detached) to $517,556 across the region ` some 8.5 per cent higher than April of 2011, according to statistics from the Toronto Real Estate Board (TREB.)
Read the full article here.
Detached homes are becoming so `precious` as the GTA continues to surge skyward, it`s going to become increasingly difficult for families to find, let afford, the Holy Grail of housing ` a place that isn`t attached to the neighbour`s.
Demand is so strong for that shrinking share of the region`s housing stock, that sales of detached homes jumped 22 per cent across the GTA in April. The strong sales of those higher-priced homes helped push up the average price of homes (including condos, semis and detached) to $517,556 across the region ` some 8.5 per cent higher than April of 2011, according to statistics from the Toronto Real Estate Board (TREB.)
Read the full article here.
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The Beach: Will the condo boom kill it or save it?
As the school gymnasium clocks ticked towards 6:30 p.m. on Monday, public servants from six city departments sat expectantly at their assigned tables. Reserve Properties Ltd. had a table, too.
The company has plans ` not yet approved ` to build a condominium building in the heart of the Beach, where iconic burger joint Lick`s sits now. Monday evening`s `open house` at a local public school was meant to answer angry residents` questions about the development.
Read the full article here.
As the school gymnasium clocks ticked towards 6:30 p.m. on Monday, public servants from six city departments sat expectantly at their assigned tables. Reserve Properties Ltd. had a table, too.
The company has plans ` not yet approved ` to build a condominium building in the heart of the Beach, where iconic burger joint Lick`s sits now. Monday evening`s `open house` at a local public school was meant to answer angry residents` questions about the development.
Read the full article here.
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Highrises? We're tops on the continent
Toronto`s condo boom is not slowing down anytime soon as the latest statistics show the city is building more high rises than anywhere else in North America.
The September 2011 data from German research company Emporis ` the world`s largest source of information on multi-storey buildings ` is included in a presentation to be discussed by the city`s economic development committee on Friday.
There are currently 132 highrise buildings under construction in Toronto, according to the figures. Mexico City ranks a distant second with 88 and New York City is in third with 86. The field drops off dramatically after that: fourth-ranking Chicago is building 17 highrises, while Miami rounds out the top five with 16.
Read the full article here.
Toronto`s condo boom is not slowing down anytime soon as the latest statistics show the city is building more high rises than anywhere else in North America.
The September 2011 data from German research company Emporis ` the world`s largest source of information on multi-storey buildings ` is included in a presentation to be discussed by the city`s economic development committee on Friday.
There are currently 132 highrise buildings under construction in Toronto, according to the figures. Mexico City ranks a distant second with 88 and New York City is in third with 86. The field drops off dramatically after that: fourth-ranking Chicago is building 17 highrises, while Miami rounds out the top five with 16.
Read the full article here.
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Busy builders unfazed by talk of Toronto condo bubble
From his office, the chief executive officer of real estate developer Diamondcorp looks south toward the towers of the Toronto skyline. But what Stephen Diamond sees is the extended expanse of tree tops between his office and the downtown core.
The houses beneath those trees are the reason the developer is comfortable making big bets on the city`s condo market. Unlike downtown Tokyo or London or New York, Toronto has a plethora of single-family homes in its core, he points out.
Read the full article here.
From his office, the chief executive officer of real estate developer Diamondcorp looks south toward the towers of the Toronto skyline. But what Stephen Diamond sees is the extended expanse of tree tops between his office and the downtown core.
The houses beneath those trees are the reason the developer is comfortable making big bets on the city`s condo market. Unlike downtown Tokyo or London or New York, Toronto has a plethora of single-family homes in its core, he points out.
Read the full article here.