The Moose Jaw and District Chamber of Commerce is happy with how Moose Jaw weathered the year, saying that closures were lower than feared and that increased local shopping helped sustain local businesses.
The purpose of the Moose Jaw and District Chamber of Commerce is to be a voice for the local business community. It offers its members a variety of benefits such as a group health insurance plan, discounted shipping rates, assistance with web design, and social media campaigns.
Chamber of Commerce CEO Rob Clark says the “Live. Love. Local.” campaign which has been running for about seven or eight months has made great progress in supporting local businesses through the pandemic. The Chamber’s social media regular highlight and advertise local businesses and participate in promotional activities.
“It’s all about supporting and shopping and living local, etc.” Clark told MooseJawToday.com in a phone interview. “I think we probably hit over 100-120 businesses that were part of the campaign… and I think it resonated, I think a lot of people stayed in (Moose Jaw) and are shopping local.”
As of this week, the Chamber boasts 541 business members, which Clark says they’re very happy with. The member directory is on the Chamber’s website at www.mjchamber.com, categorized by industry or service.
The Chamber also has access to COVID rapid test kits, which they’ve been handing out to anyone in the community who needs them. Clark said they have handed out around 10,000 rapid test kits so far, translating to 50,000 tests facilitated by the Chamber since September. The Chamber is currently out of stock on test kits, but will have more in the new year.
“It’s great that the community is coming to get them and stay safe and maybe slow the spread (of COVID),” Clark added.
Current Chamber President Aaron Ruston said “Rob (Clark) and Heather (Bergdahl) have been absolutely amazing in initiating so many different projects. The city is truly blessed to have them heading up the Moose Jaw Chamber of Commerce.”
The Chamber of Commerce was saddened by the businesses forced to close due to the pandemic. Nevertheless, Clark said the local economy proved more durable than expected, with relatively few closures and a decidedly positive outlook for 2022.
Ruston agreed, saying that “I’m excited for the future of Moose Jaw. 2022 is gonna be a smokin’ good year.”
TORONTO – Strength in the base metal and technology sectors helped Canada’s main stock index gain almost 100 points on Friday, while U.S. stock markets also climbed higher.
The S&P/TSX composite index closed up 93.51 points at 23,568.65.
In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was up 297.01 points at 41,393.78. The S&P 500 index was up 30.26 points at 5,626.02, while the Nasdaq composite was up 114.30 points at 17,683.98.
The Canadian dollar traded for 73.61 cents US compared with 73.58 cents US on Thursday.
The October crude oil contract was down 32 cents at US$68.65 per barrel and the October natural gas contract was down five cents at US$2.31 per mmBTU.
The December gold contract was up US$30.10 at US$2,610.70 an ounce and the December copper contract was up four cents US$4.24 a pound.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
OTTAWA – Statistics Canada says wholesale sales, excluding petroleum, petroleum products, and other hydrocarbons and excluding oilseed and grain, rose 0.4 per cent to $82.7 billion in July.
The increase came as sales in the miscellaneous subsector gained three per cent to reach $10.5 billion in July, helped by strength in the agriculture supplies industry group, which rose 9.2 per cent.
The food, beverage and tobacco subsector added 1.7 per cent to total $15 billion in July.
The personal and household goods subsector fell 2.5 per cent to $12.1 billion.
In volume terms, overall wholesale sales rose 0.5 per cent in July.
Statistics Canada started including oilseed and grain as well as the petroleum and petroleum products subsector as part of wholesale trade last year, but is excluding the data from monthly analysis until there is enough historical data.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
TORONTO – Canada’s main stock index was up more than 150 points in late-morning trading, helped by strength in the base metal and energy sectors, while U.S. stock markets were mixed.
The S&P/TSX composite index was up 172.18 points at 23,383.35.
In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was down 34.99 points at 40,826.72. The S&P 500 index was up 10.56 points at 5,564.69, while the Nasdaq composite was up 74.84 points at 17,470.37.
The Canadian dollar traded for 73.55 cents US compared with 73.59 cents US on Wednesday.
The October crude oil contract was up $2.00 at US$69.31 per barrel and the October natural gas contract was up five cents at US$2.32 per mmBTU.
The December gold contract was up US$40.00 at US$2,582.40 an ounce and the December copper contract was up six cents at US$4.20 a pound.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 12, 2024.
