Business

Canada’s population added 1.15 million people since last year: StatsCan

Published

1 year ago

September 28, 2023

Agency says that 98 per cent of Canada’s population growth over last year came from international migration

The surge in international migration is driving Canada’s population growth rate to heights not seen in almost 70 years, and Alberta is now growing faster than any province has since records began, Statistics Canada reports.

The latest population estimates from Statistics Canada show Canada’s population grew by 1.15 million from July 2022 to July 2023 — the biggest jump in the G7 — and Canada’s population growth rate is now 2.9 per cent.

That growth rate is the highest recorded in Canada since a 12-month period in 1957, when it hit 3.3 per cent annually during the height of the baby boom and the Hungarian refugee crisis.

Close to 98 per cent of that population growth can be attributed to net migration. The number of non-permanent residents has jumped 46 per cent, mostly due to an increase in work and study permits.

The tables show that since July 2022, the number of non-permanent residents increased by almost 700,000 to 2.2. million, and the number of immigrants increased by 468,817.

Statistics Canada published a new data table estimating the number of non-permanent residents by type and province after a CIBC Capital Markets report in August said the official number of non-permanent residents could be underestimated by close to one million.

The agency stood by its numbers at the time. It said Wednesday that its new table’s impact on Canada’s total population is “minimal.”

The table includes “new adjustments to the delays incurred after permits expire,” improving the counting of “non-permanent residents living in Canada with an expired permit” who are in the process of renewal, Statistics Canada said.

Alberta leads provincial growth

While Alberta’s 4 per cent population growth was in part fuelled by international migration, it also was driven by record-high migration between provinces.

In the last year, Alberta saw 56,245 more people move to the province than leave it — the highest ever annual gain since Statistics Canada started collecting comparative data in 1971/72.

Alberta wasn’t the only province to set records. Seven other provinces also saw their population rates spike to record heights:

Prince Edward Island at 3.9 per cent
Nova Scotia at 3.2 per cent
New Brunswick at 3.1 per cent
Ontario at 3.0 per cent
Manitoba at 2.9 per cent
Saskatchewan at 2.6 per cent
Quebec at 2.3 per cent

Canada’s population on track to double by 2048

While Quebec’s growth rate set a record in the province, it experienced the second lowest population growth rate of all provinces after Newfoundland and Labrador, which only grew by 1.3 per cent.

Rounding out the provincial growth rates are British Columbia at 3.0 per cent, Manitoba at 2.9 per cent and Saskatchewan at 2.6 per cent.

Statistics Canada said the number of temporary immigrants was highest in three provinces, with Ontario reporting close to 1 million non-permanent residents, Quebec about 500,000 and B.C. 400,000.

Statistics Canada said that the country’s fertility rate is now at a record low of 1.33 children per woman, compared with 1.44 in 2021.

Only two per cent of Canada’s population growth over the last year came from the difference between births and deaths.

Despite that declining birth rate, Canada’s population could double in 25 years if international migration levels remain constant in the coming decades.

Source link

Business

Carry On Canadian Business. Carry On!

Published

2 days ago

October 22, 2024

Steven Kaszab

Human Resources Officers must be very busy these days what with the general turnover of employees in our retail and business sectors. It is hard enough to find skilled people let alone potential employees willing to be trained. Then after the training, a few weeks go by then they come to you and ask for a raise. You refuse as there simply is no excess money in the budget and away they fly to wherever they come from, trained but not willing to put in the time to achieve that wanted raise.

I have had potentials come in and we give them a test to see if they do indeed know how to weld, polish or work with wood. 2-10 we hire, and one of those is gone in a week or two. Ask that they want overtime, and their laughter leaving the building is loud and unsettling. Housing starts are doing well but way behind because those trades needed to finish a project simply don’t come to the site, with delay after delay. Some people’s attitudes are just too funny. A recent graduate from a Ivy League university came in for an interview. The position was mid-management potential, but when we told them a three month period was needed and then they would make the big bucks they disappeared as fast as they arrived.

Government agencies are really no help, sending us people unsuited or unwilling to carry out the jobs we offer. Handing money over to staffing firms whose referrals are weak and ineffectual. Perhaps with the Fall and Winter upon us, these folks will have to find work and stop playing on the golf course or cottaging away. Tried to hire new arrivals in Canada but it is truly difficult to find someone who has a real identity card and is approved to live and work here. Who do we hire? Several years ago my father’s firm was rocking and rolling with all sorts of work. It was a summer day when the immigration officers arrived and 30+ employees hit the bricks almost immediately. The investigation that followed had threats of fines thrown at us by the officials. Good thing we kept excellent records, photos and digital copies. We had to prove the illegal documents given to us were as good as the real McCoy.

Restauranteurs, builders, manufacturers, finishers, trades-based firms, and warehousing are all suspect in hiring illegals, yet that becomes secondary as Toronto increases its minimum wage again bringing our payroll up another $120,000. Survival in Canada’s financial and business sectors is questionable for many. Good luck Chuck!. at least your carbon tax refund check should be arriving soon.

Steven Kaszab
Bradford, Ontario
skaszab@yahoo.ca

Business

Imperial to cut prices in NWT community after low river prevented resupply by barges

Published

2 days ago

October 22, 2024

Anne Joseph

NORMAN WELLS, N.W.T. – Imperial Oil says it will temporarily reduce its fuel prices in a Northwest Territories community that has seen costs skyrocket due to low water on the Mackenzie River forcing the cancellation of the summer barge resupply season.

Imperial says in a Facebook post it will cut the air transportation portion that’s included in its wholesale price in Norman Wells for diesel fuel, or heating oil, from $3.38 per litre to $1.69 per litre, starting Tuesday.

The air transportation increase, it further states, will be implemented over a longer period.

It says Imperial is closely monitoring how much fuel needs to be airlifted to the Norman Wells area to prevent runouts until the winter road season begins and supplies can be replenished.

Gasoline and heating fuel prices approached $5 a litre at the start of this month.

Norman Wells’ town council declared a local emergency on humanitarian grounds last week as some of its 700 residents said they were facing monthly fuel bills coming to more than $5,000.

“The wholesale price increase that Imperial has applied is strictly to cover the air transportation costs. There is no Imperial profit margin included on the wholesale price. Imperial does not set prices at the retail level,” Imperial’s statement on Monday said.

The statement further said Imperial is working closely with the Northwest Territories government on ways to help residents in the near term.

“Imperial Oil’s decision to lower the price of home heating fuel offers immediate relief to residents facing financial pressures. This step reflects a swift response by Imperial Oil to discussions with the GNWT and will help ease short-term financial burdens on residents,” Caroline Wawzonek, Deputy Premier and Minister of Finance and Infrastructure, said in a news release Monday.

Wawzonek also noted the Territories government has supported the community with implementation of a fund supporting businesses and communities impacted by barge cancellations. She said there have also been increases to the Senior Home Heating Subsidy in Norman Wells, and continued support for heating costs for eligible Income Assistance recipients.

Additionally, she said the government has donated $150,000 to the Norman Wells food bank.

In its declaration of a state of emergency, the town said the mayor and council recognized the recent hike in fuel prices has strained household budgets, raised transportation costs, and affected local businesses.

It added that for the next three months, water and sewer service fees will be waived for all residents and businesses.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 21, 2024.

Source link

Business

U.S. vote has Canadian business leaders worried about protectionist policies: KPMG

Published

2 days ago

October 22, 2024

Anne Joseph

TORONTO – A new report says many Canadian business leaders are worried about economic uncertainties related to the looming U.S. election.

The survey by KPMG in Canada of 735 small- and medium-sized businesses says 87 per cent fear the Canadian economy could become “collateral damage” from American protectionist policies that lead to less favourable trade deals and increased tariffs

It says that due to those concerns, 85 per cent of business leaders in Canada polled are reviewing their business strategies to prepare for a change in leadership.

The concerns are primarily being felt by larger Canadian companies and sectors that are highly integrated with the U.S. economy, such as manufacturing, automotive, transportation and warehousing, energy and natural resources, as well as technology, media and telecommunications.

Shaira Nanji, a KPMG Law partner in its tax practice, says the prospect of further changes to economic and trade policies in the U.S. means some Canadian firms will need to look for ways to mitigate added costs and take advantage of potential trade relief provisions to remain competitive.

Both presidential candidates have campaigned on protectionist policies that could cause uncertainty for Canadian trade, and whoever takes the White House will be in charge during the review of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement in 2026.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 22, 2024.

Source link