Expert says silence in B.C. port lockout unusual while retailers call for urgency

A resident of British Columbia’s Sunshine Coast says a rare tornado that she saw touch down on Monday was like a scene out of a movie with trees coming down “like dominoes” in the high winds.

Western University’s Northern Tornadoes Project, which tracks storm events across Canada, has confirmed that what Lynn Smith captured on video during the windstorms that hit much of the B.C. coast was a tornado, with wind speeds of 115 km/h.

Smith says she turned on the camera hoping to send a tongue-in-cheek clip to a relative about the “beautiful day” outside Sechelt, where she regularly travels from her home in Halfmoon Bay.

Smith says stormy weather in the region isn’t out of the ordinary but when she saw a “big, healthy” tree come down, she knew something wasn’t right.

The footage captured by Smith from her car shows winds whipping up forest debris as a tree falls across the road and she gasps in disbelief.

Smith says she was worried someone was injured and called 911 when she turned around, flashing her lights at oncoming traffic to warn them of the downed trees.

Northern Tornadoes Project executive director David Sills says the team is still awaiting satellite imagery data on the tornado event.

The Sechelt tornado is only the second recorded by the project in B.C. this year, after one that occurred over Mabel Lake in the B.C. Interior in August.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 7, 2024.

The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.

Average asking rents declined nationally on a year-over-year basis for the first time in more than three years in October, said a report out Thursday.

The report from Rentals.ca and Urbanation found average asking rents across Canada sat at $2,152 in October, down 1.2 per cent from the same month in 2023 — the first national decrease since July 2021.

The decline is mainly concentrated in Canada’s major urban centres, with cities like Toronto, Vancouver, Calgary, and Montreal seeing rent decreases.

Urbanation president Shaun Hildebrand said it is rare for rents to decline year-over-year at the national level.

“This is happening as the key drivers of rent growth in recent years — a strengthening economy, quickly rising population, and worsening homeownership affordability — are beginning to reverse,” said Hildebrand.

“As a result, we can likely expect this trend for rents to continue in the near-term, particularly as apartment completions remain at record highs.”

B.C. and Ontario recorded the most significant annual rent decreases among the provinces, with the former seeing average asking rents for apartments down 3.4 per cent to $2,549 and the latter recording a 5.7 per cent drop to $2,350.

Rents rose 17.1 per cent in Saskatchewan, which remained the fastest-growing province in the country in terms of asking price, after seeing 23.5 per cent annual growth in September.

By city, Toronto recorded the largest annual decline in asking rents for apartments in October, at 9.2 per cent, to reach an average of $2,642. Vancouver saw an 8.4 per cent year-over-year rent decline to an average of $2,945, while Calgary apartment rents fell 4.7 per cent to $1,995.

In Montreal, average rents were down 2.9 per cent at $1,987. Ottawa apartment rents held steady with a 0.4 per cent annual increase to reach $2,207.

However, Edmonton led rent growth in Canada’s largest markets as apartment rents rose 8.4 per cent annually to an average of $1,584.

Based on the report, the average asking rent for a one-bedroom unit in Canada was $1,923 in October, down 0.8 per cent from a year ago. The average asking price for a two-bedroom unit was $2,308, down 0.2 per cent.

Overall, asking rents for purpose-built rental apartments in October rose 1.7 per cent compared with a year earlier to reach an average of $2,100.

Meanwhile, condominium apartment rents, which averaged $2,265, were down 3.8 per cent.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 7, 2024.

The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.

Quebecor Inc. says it recorded its best quarter for wireless customer acquisitions in its history during the three-month period that ended Sept. 30, though it reported its profit and revenue edged lower.

During the quarter, Quebecor said it added 132,100 mobile phone subscriptions, compared with an increase of 88,700 in the same period of 2023 — an increase of 3.4 per cent year-over-year.

The company said it now has a total of more than four million wireless connections under its Videotron, Freedom Mobile and Fizz brands.

Chief executive Pierre Karl Péladeau called it an “important milestone” for Quebecor, adding his company’s long-term strategy to act as a “lower price, better and faster alternative” to Canada’s Big 3 telecom companies is paying off.

“We continue to outperform our competitors,” Péladeau told analysts on the company’s third-quarter earnings call on Thursday.

“We have created a healthy, competitive environment, giving Canadians more choice, lower prices and better experience.”

But Quebecor said its net income attributable to shareholders amounted to $189 million or 81 cents per share for the quarter. The result compared with a profit of $209.3 million or 91 cents per share in the same quarter last year.

Its adjusted income from operating activities amounted to 82 cents per share, down from 88 cents per share in the same quarter last year. Revenue for the quarter totalled $1.39 billion, down from $1.42 billion a year earlier.

Péladeau said Quebecor’s long-term strategy comes with “short-term sacrifices.”

“We are confident that our business model of putting the customer first will always prevail, as proven by our momentum that keeps improving,” he said.

Quebecor reported its mobile phone average revenue per user (ARPU) was $35.31 in the third quarter, down $2.29, or 6.2 per cent, from the third quarter of the prior year.

It said that was mainly due to higher promotional discounts, lower overage revenues and a change in the customer mix, including the dilutive effect of Freedom’s and Fizz’s prepaid services.

“Realistically, we do not expect ARPU growth until we reach a better balance between our brands, but we anticipate that customer growth would largely offset the pressure on ARPU,” said Péladeau.

Desjardins analyst Jerome Dubreuil called Quebecor’s ARPU decline “weak,” with the figures slightly worse than forecasted. He said the results show that competitive dynamics in the industry are “also apparent for the challenger.”

But he noted the company appears motivated to maintain pressure on its three largest competitors through “aggressive pricing” on its Freedom Mobile wireless plans.

“In light of current wireless pricing and Quebecor’s decent margins, we believe Quebecor continues to be well-positioned with its Freedom offering for either market share gains or improving ARPU performance,” Dubreuil said in a note.

Chief financial officer Hugues Simard said the company’s potential to grow its ARPU would depend on the future of an ongoing “price war” in the Canadian telecom market.

He said Quebecor has been “disciplined” in its back-to-school offers along with its plans for upcoming Black Friday promotions.

“We can’t speak for our competitors. If they go crazy again, or if they continue to go crazy in Quebec, then I’m not sure where ARPU is going to end up,” said Simard.

“We’re doing our share and now I think the ball is in the incumbents’ court.”

Although Quebecor did not disclose exact figures for its customer churn — a measure of subscribers who cancelled their service — Simard said it was lower across all its brands from last year.

On a monthly basis, he said churn was just above one per cent for Videotron and around 1.5 per cent for Freedom Mobile and Fizz.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 7, 2024.

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