The poll, which was conducted between Feb. 28 and 29, found that 37 per cent of Canadians believe the coronavirus will hit their personal financial situation.
That’s an increase of 20 percentage point from Feb. 14 and 15, when Canadians were asked the same question.
Darrell Bricker, the Global CEO of Ipsos Public Affairs, explained that such a dramatic jump in numbers over roughly two weeks doesn’t happen often.
“This is kind of unprecedented,” Bricker said.
“Sometimes thing get out there and there are more short-term issues and they fade away quickly. This one seems to be more fundamental.”
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Coronavirus outbreak: World Bank looking to provide solutions for developing countries
Bricker noted that Canada’s jump of 20 percentage points is higher than the increase seen in most other countries where the poll was also conducted.
“Where we’ve really seen movement [in Canada] is not necessarily in the fears about the infection itself, although that has moved up. Where the real jump has been is the question the relates to financial impact.”
The majority of Canadians, at 67 per cent, also said they believe the virus reached the country because it’s “impossible to forecast.” Another 33 per cent said that the virus reached Canada due to a lack of preventative measures enforced by officials.
That means Canadians aren’t “hammering the government” over its spread, Bricker said.
“What it means is that it’s seen as something that is kind of out of control, which in many ways is even more scary,” he noted.
The rise in anxiety over COVID-19’s impact on finances is being noted around the world, the poll noted. The same questions were posed to respondents in 10 other countries dealing with coronavirus cases. individuals in all countries were more fearful of a financial impact than they were earlier in February.
In Japan, 56 per cent of people said they expected a negative effect on their wallet. Japan’s prime minister, who ordered schools closed nationwide last week, has been pressing for legal backing to declare a state of emergency if needed.
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Fear over finances was also reported in Italy, where 41 per cent said they were wary of the situation. More than 3,000 people have tested positive in Italy and 107 of them have died — the largest number of deaths outside of China.
Individuals in other countries, such as Australia and Russia, also reported higher levels of financial anxiety over the illness, both at 40 per cent.
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Since December 2019, there have been 94,000 cases of the infection and 3,200 deaths. The large majority of them have been in China.
Respondents to the survey aren’t the only ones keeping a close eye on finances amid the spread of coronavirus, though.
The Bank of Canada cut its trend-setting interest rate by half a percentage point to 1.25 per cent down from 1.75 per cent on Wednesday, in an effort to soften the economic impact of the COVID-19 outbreak.
The decision came after the U.S. Federal Reserve implemented a similar cut on Tuesday, acting before its next scheduled policy meeting on March 17-18.
“While Canada’s economy has been operating close to potential with inflation on target, the COVID-19 virus is a material negative shock to the Canadian and global outlooks, and monetary and fiscal authorities are responding,” the central bank said in a statement.
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While the traders and analysts had widely anticipated that Canada’s central bank would follow the U.S. lead, it’s unclear to what extent the rate cut will shore up sentiment among investors, markets and consumers.
Global stock markets have also been closely watched in the past weeks over coronavirus outbreak uncertainties. Markets turned higher Wednesday, extending days of volatility, as investors weighed the economic impact of COVID-19.
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Covid-19: We asked an infectious disease expert your coronavirus questions
Rubina Ahmed-Haq, a personal finance expert, explained that Canadians hoping for long-term investment gains shouldn’t change their course of action due to coronavirus outbreak fears.
Ahmed-Haq noted that the stock market fluctuates with different political, social and economic events.
“This is an event just like the financial meltdown in 2008 and 2009, or the SARS outbreak in 2003,” she said.
“If you constantly follow headlines, you’re never going to be able to keep your money invested over the long term.”
She said those looking to invest in the long term — anything more than five years — should not be worried. Ahmed-Haq said those with questions or concerns should speak with a financial advisor.
This Ipsos survey was conducted between Feb. 28 and 29 on the Global Advisor online platform among 10,000 adults aged 18-74 in Canada and the United States and 16-74 in Australia, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia, United Kingdom and Vietnam. The sample consists of approximately 1,000 individuals in each country, which are considered accurate +/- 3.5 percentage points.
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— With files from Global News reporter Erica Alini, The Associated Press
VANCOUVER – Contract negotiations resume today in Vancouver in a labour dispute that has paralyzed container cargo shipping at British Columbia’s ports since Monday.
The BC Maritime Employers Association and International Longshore and Warehouse Union Local 514 are scheduled to meet for the next three days in mediated talks to try to break a deadlock in negotiations.
The union, which represents more than 700 longshore supervisors at ports, including Vancouver, Prince Rupert and Nanaimo, has been without a contract since March last year.
The latest talks come after employers locked out workers in response to what it said was “strike activity” by union members.
The start of the lockout was then followed by several days of no engagement between the two parties, prompting federal Labour Minister Steven MacKinnon to speak with leaders on both sides, asking them to restart talks.
MacKinnon had said that the talks were “progressing at an insufficient pace, indicating a concerning absence of urgency from the parties involved” — a sentiment echoed by several business groups across Canada.
In a joint letter, more than 100 organizations, including the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, Business Council of Canada and associations representing industries from automotive and fertilizer to retail and mining, urged the government to do whatever it takes to end the work stoppage.
“While we acknowledge efforts to continue with mediation, parties have not been able to come to a negotiated agreement,” the letter says. “So, the federal government must take decisive action, using every tool at its disposal to resolve this dispute and limit the damage caused by this disruption.
“We simply cannot afford to once again put Canadian businesses at risk, which in turn puts Canadian livelihoods at risk.”
In the meantime, the union says it has filed a complaint to the Canada Industrial Relations Board against the employers, alleging the association threatened to pull existing conditions out of the last contract in direct contact with its members.
“The BCMEA is trying to undermine the union by attempting to turn members against its democratically elected leadership and bargaining committee — despite the fact that the BCMEA knows full well we received a 96 per cent mandate to take job action if needed,” union president Frank Morena said in a statement.
The employers have responded by calling the complaint “another meritless claim,” adding the final offer to the union that includes a 19.2 per cent wage increase over a four-year term remains on the table.
“The final offer has been on the table for over a week and represents a fair and balanced proposal for employees, and if accepted would end this dispute,” the employers’ statement says. “The offer does not require any concessions from the union.”
The union says the offer does not address the key issue of staffing requirement at the terminals as the port introduces more automation to cargo loading and unloading, which could potentially require fewer workers to operate than older systems.
The Port of Vancouver is the largest in Canada and has seen a number of labour disruptions, including two instances involving the rail and grain storage sectors earlier this year.
A 13-day strike by another group of workers at the port last year resulted in the disruption of a significant amount of shipping and trade.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 9, 2024.
The Royal Canadian Legion says a new partnership with e-commerce giant Amazon is helping boost its veterans’ fund, and will hopefully expand its donor base in the digital world.
Since the Oct. 25 launch of its Amazon.ca storefront, the legion says it has received nearly 10,000 orders for poppies.
Online shoppers can order lapel poppies on Amazon in exchange for donations or buy items such as “We Remember” lawn signs, Remembrance Day pins and other accessories, with all proceeds going to the legion’s Poppy Trust Fund for Canadian veterans and their families.
Nujma Bond, the legion’s national spokesperson, said the organization sees this move as keeping up with modern purchasing habits.
“As the world around us evolves we have been looking at different ways to distribute poppies and to make it easier for people to access them,” she said in an interview.
“This is definitely a way to reach a wider number of Canadians of all ages. And certainly younger Canadians are much more active on the web, on social media in general, so we’re also engaging in that way.”
Al Plume, a member of a legion branch in Trenton, Ont., said the online store can also help with outreach to veterans who are far from home.
“For veterans that are overseas and are away, (or) can’t get to a store they can order them online, it’s Amazon.” Plume said.
Plume spent 35 years in the military with the Royal Engineers, and retired eight years ago. He said making sure veterans are looked after is his passion.
“I’ve seen the struggles that our veterans have had with Veterans Affairs … and that’s why I got involved, with making sure that the people get to them and help the veterans with their paperwork.”
But the message about the Amazon storefront didn’t appear to reach all of the legion’s locations, with volunteers at Branch 179 on Vancouver’s Commercial Drive saying they hadn’t heard about the online push.
Holly Paddon, the branch’s poppy campaign co-ordinator and bartender, said the Amazon partnership never came up in meetings with other legion volunteers and officials.
“I work at the legion, I work with the Vancouver poppy office and I go to the meetings for the Vancouver poppy campaign — which includes all the legions in Vancouver — and not once has this been mentioned,” she said.
Paddon said the initiative is a great idea, but she would like to have known more about it.
The legion also sells a larger collection of items at poppystore.ca.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 9, 2024.
