The fresh wave of COVID lockdowns in Canada is having little impact outside close-contact sectors like retail, easing worries about spillover effects and long-term scarring from the restrictions.
Employment in Canada fell more than expected in January, with a loss of 212,800 positions that reversed five months of gains, the country’s statistics agency reported on Friday. But the entirety of the drop was in part-time work, concentrated in a few sectors and confined to the two provinces with the toughest measures — Quebec and Ontario.
That’s stoking confidence in the underlying strength of the recovery and the view that the economy will quickly rebound as authorities begin to ease containment efforts.
“The report was weaker than expected, but once we sifted through the numbers, they weren’t quite as bad as the headline,” Brett House, deputy chief economist at Bank of Nova Scotia said by phone. “We don’t think it changes the overall narrative.”
To be sure, the numbers put a bit of a damper on what has become an increasingly optimistic consensus in recent weeks. The global vaccine rollout, rising commodity prices that help Canada and potential impacts from more fiscal stimulus in the U.S. are driving more upbeat predictions.
A report last week showed the economy grew more quickly than anticipated at the end of 2020, even amid a new wave of lockdowns. Some analysts are even questioning whether a widely projected first-quarter contraction will materialize after all.
Even with the employment drop in January, the data don’t necessarily translate into lower economic activity, economists said. Full-time jobs actually increased slightly in January, driving total hours worked up 0.9 per centon the month despite the massive decline in part-time positions.
What Bloomberg Economics Says…
“A second consecutive monthly drop in employment in January was concentrated in sectors most impacted by the pandemic, namely retail, restaurants and bars. Though cuts were larger than expected, they were also concentrated in part-time workers and in industries that we expect to reopen when the public health crisis abates, limiting implications for the outlook.”
–Andrew Husby, Bloomberg economist
Wholesale, retail, accommodation and food service employment remains down about 15% from pre-pandemic levels — employment in other sectors has recovered to within 2% compared with February 2020.
The lockdowns were also an Ontario and Quebec phenomenon. The country’s biggest provinces had seen a sharp increase in virus cases, requiring new restrictions — including stay-at-home orders and curfews — that triggered fresh lay-offs. Excluding those two provinces, however, employment rose in January.
Canada’s labor market is also faring better now than it did during the first wave of restrictions in March and April, when employment fell by 3 million, suggesting businesses are adapting. More than 850,000 jobs have yet to be recovered.
The jobs report “is certainly a little jarring but if one looks past the temporary impact of Covid measures, some of which have already been rolled back, the data does not look that bad,” Toronto-Dominion Bank strategists including Andrew Kelvin said in a report to investors.
Canada’s currency also shrugged off the report, climbing against the U.S. dollar after U.S. payroll numbers also came in shy of expectations. The loonie was trading 0.5% higher at C$1.2765 against the greenback at 1 p.m. Toronto time, though it dropped against most other major currencies.
The country’s vaccine program, while behind schedule, is also progressing. And Ontario and Quebec have already begun to relax some of the more stringent measures amid a decline in new cases.
“An improving health situation along with ramped up vaccinations should support a sustained easing of health restrictions and a quick resumption of economic and job growth,” Tony Stillo, an economist at Oxford Economics, said in a report to investors.
TORONTO – Canada Goose Holdings Inc. says it has signed a deal that will result in the creation of its first eyewear collection.
The deal announced on Thursday by the Toronto-based luxury apparel company comes in the form of an exclusive, long-term global licensing agreement with Marchon Eyewear Inc.
The terms and value of the agreement were not disclosed, but Marchon produces eyewear for brands including Lacoste, Nike, Calvin Klein, Ferragamo, Longchamp and Zeiss.
Marchon plans to roll out both sunglasses and optical wear under the Canada Goose name next spring, starting in North America.
Canada Goose says the eyewear will be sold through optical retailers, department stores, Canada Goose shops and its website.
Canada Goose CEO Dani Reiss told The Canadian Press in August that he envisioned his company eventually expanding into eyewear and luggage.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.
Almost seven years since news broke of an alleged conspiracy to fix the price of packaged bread across Canada, the saga isn’t over: the Competition Bureau continues to investigate the companies that may have been involved, and two class-action lawsuits continue to work their way through the courts.
Here’s a timeline of key events in the bread price-fixing case.
Oct. 31, 2017: The Competition Bureau says it’s investigating allegations of bread price-fixing and that it was granted search warrants in the case. Several grocers confirm they are co-operating in the probe.
Dec. 19, 2017: Loblaw and George Weston say they participated in an “industry-wide price-fixing arrangement” to raise the price of packaged bread. The companies say they have been co-operating in the Competition Bureau’s investigation since March 2015, when they self-reported to the bureau upon discovering anti-competitive behaviour, and are receiving immunity from prosecution. They announce they are offering $25 gift cards to customers amid the ongoing investigation into alleged bread price-fixing.
Jan. 31, 2018: In court documents, the Competition Bureau says at least $1.50 was added to the price of a loaf of bread between about 2001 and 2016.
Dec. 20, 2019: A class-action lawsuit in a Quebec court against multiple grocers and food companies is certified against a number of companies allegedly involved in bread price-fixing, including Loblaw, George Weston, Metro, Sobeys, Walmart Canada, Canada Bread and Giant Tiger (which have all denied involvement, except for Loblaw and George Weston, which later settled with the plaintiffs).
Dec. 31, 2021: A class-action lawsuit in an Ontario court covering all Canadian residents except those in Quebec who bought packaged bread from a company named in the suit is certified against roughly the same group of companies.
June 21, 2023: Bakery giant Canada Bread Co. is fined $50 million after pleading guilty to four counts of price-fixing under the Competition Act as part of the Competition Bureau’s ongoing investigation.
Oct. 25 2023: Canada Bread files a statement of defence in the Ontario class action denying participating in the alleged conspiracy and saying any anti-competitive behaviour it participated in was at the direction and to the benefit of its then-majority owner Maple Leaf Foods, which is not a defendant in the case (neither is its current owner Grupo Bimbo). Maple Leaf calls Canada Bread’s accusations “baseless.”
Dec. 20, 2023: Metro files new documents in the Ontario class action accusing Loblaw and its parent company George Weston of conspiring to implicate it in the alleged scheme, denying involvement. Sobeys has made a similar claim. The two companies deny the allegations.
July 25, 2024: Loblaw and George Weston say they agreed to pay a combined $500 million to settle both the Ontario and Quebec class-action lawsuits. Loblaw’s share of the settlement includes a $96-million credit for the gift cards it gave out years earlier.
Sept. 12, 2024: Canada Bread files new documents in Ontario court as part of the class action, claiming Maple Leaf used it as a “shield” to avoid liability in the alleged scheme. Maple Leaf was a majority shareholder of Canada Bread until 2014, and the company claims it’s liable for any price-fixing activity. Maple Leaf refutes the claims.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.
Companies in this story: (TSX:L, TSX:MFI, TSX:MRU, TSX:EMP.A, TSX:WN)
TORONTO – TD Bank Group, which is mired in a money laundering scandal in the U.S., says chief executive Bharat Masrani will retire next year.
Masrani, who will retire officially on April 10, 2025, says the bank’s, “anti-money laundering challenges,” took place on his watch and he takes full responsibility.
The bank named Raymond Chun, TD’s group head, Canadian personal banking, as his successor.
As part of a transition plan, Chun will become chief operating officer on Nov. 1 before taking over the top job when Masrani steps down at the bank’s annual meeting next year.
TD also announced that Riaz Ahmed, group head, wholesale banking and president and CEO of TD Securities, will retire at the end of January 2025.
TD has taken billions in charges related to ongoing U.S. investigations into the failure of its anti-money laundering program.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.
