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Economy

Ocean intelligence drives blue economy – University of Victoria News

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The urgent need to protect our warming planet is stimulating the next great wave of economic innovation. Fuelled by scientific evidence, coordinated efforts and transformative action, Canada has joined other nations in developing a roadmap to a “blue economy,” which strikes a balance between economic growth and sustainability. 

Kate Moran, president and chief executive officer of Ocean Networks Canada (ONC), an initiative of the University of Victoria, explains why Canada is well-positioned for success to show cooperative leadership in the global blue economy through ocean intelligence and progressive, ocean-based industries and programs. Moran is speaking at this week’s annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. The event there marks the beginning of ONC’s pivotal role 15 years ago providing an interactive real-time window into the world’s understanding of the ocean. 

Q. What is required to build a sustainable blue economy in Canada?

A. A sustainable blue economy in Canada can be built through innovative ocean data analytics, ecosystem-based fisheries management and renewable energy systems. It will be backed by significant, coordinated investment in coastal and maritime tourism, resource exploration, shipbuilding and new technology development to support emerging ocean-based industries such as marine biotech and bioprospecting. 

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Long-term success will depend on smart public policy, support for research, and continued ocean sector investments to ensure that we maximize the efforts of global partnerships. We already have the seeds of this mission-oriented approach with ONC on the Pacific Coast and the Ocean Supercluster on the Atlantic Coast.

Q. What role does ocean intelligence play in addressing the global climate crisis?  

A. We all know the state of the ocean is an important indicator of the overall health of our planet. Ocean observation shows undeniable evidence of a rapidly changing climate, which means we must act swiftly using all the information, knowledge and resources we have available.

When we pair ocean observation data with scientific knowledge, we begin to unlock the astonishing potential of ocean intelligence. Ocean intelligence presents the opportunity to develop new technologies that address climate change, as well as the tools to measure if and how our efforts are making a difference.

Q. How can we make sure that our scientific findings are translated into real-world applications to, for example, influence policy?

A. The short answer is to ensure we take important scientific findings and make them relevant to those who make the big decisions that impact our climate. ONC is a great example, as we began primarily as a science facility 15 years ago and expanded into developing applications for society and industry. 

We know that ocean intelligence is an essential source of information that, when in the right hands, can guide coastal communities, researchers, policymakers and governments. By working collaboratively with stakeholders, we can ensure that our findings are utilized to inform science-backed decision-making about our future. 

Q. What does a successful blue economy look like now and in the future?

A. Canada has great potential for a sustainable blue economy, but only if we act with urgency to tackle these critical issues of our time. A mission-oriented approach with common goals is essential. Our strategy should start with wide consultation across Canada’s provinces and territories, especially with Indigenous Peoples, and should outline a vision for Canada’s ocean-related sectors that supports this broader goal. 

Envisioning the blue economy of the future starts with development of new technology, specifically, solutions for climate change.
Kate Moran, ONC president and chief executive officer

Q. Feb. 11 marks the International Day of Women in Science. Why is it important to have more women working in science-related fields?

A. Long-standing gender stereotypes are pushing women and girls away from science-related fields, and there is still work to be done to achieve full and equal access to and participation in the sciences. At Ocean Networks Canada, we celebrate and empower women and girls who are leading scientific innovation and we call for action to remove the barriers that hold them back.

A more innovative society functions well, takes care of our planet, and finds new and better ways to do things. It inspires scientific and technological breakthroughs and brings about exciting new opportunities for economic development. This month, we are celebrating diversity through the UN International Day of Women and Girls in Science and Black History Month. Diversity in science is vital for a more innovative society.

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Economy

U.S. economic growth for last quarter revised up slightly to healthy 3.4% annual rate – The Globe and Mail

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The U.S. economy grew at a solid 3.4 per cent annual pace from October through December, the government said Thursday in an upgrade from its previous estimate. The government had previously estimated that the economy expanded at a 3.2 per cent rate last quarter.

The Commerce Department’s revised measure of the nation’s gross domestic product – the total output of goods and services – confirmed that the economy decelerated from its sizzling 4.9 per cent rate of expansion in the July-September quarter.

But last quarter’s growth was still a solid performance, coming in the face of higher interest rates and powered by growing consumer spending, exports and business investment in buildings and software. It marked the sixth straight quarter in which the economy has grown at an annual rate above 2 per cent.

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For all of 2023, the U.S. economy – the world’s biggest – grew 2.5 per cent, up from 1.9 per cent in 2022. In the current January-March quarter, the economy is believed to be growing at a slower but still decent 2.1 per cent annual rate, according to a forecasting model issued by the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta.

Thursday’s GDP report also suggested that inflation pressures were continuing to ease. The Federal Reserve’s favoured measure of prices – called the personal consumption expenditures price index – rose at a 1.8 per cent annual rate in the fourth quarter. That was down from 2.6 per cent in the third quarter, and it was the smallest rise since 2020, when COVID-19 triggered a recession and sent prices falling.

Stripping out volatile food and energy prices, so-called core inflation amounted to 2 per cent from October through December, unchanged from the third quarter.

The economy’s resilience over the past two years has repeatedly defied predictions that the ever-higher borrowing rates the Fed engineered to fight inflation would lead to waves of layoffs and probably a recession. Beginning in March 2022, the Fed jacked up its benchmark rate 11 times, to a 23-year high, making borrowing much more expensive for businesses and households.

Yet the economy has kept growing, and employers have kept hiring – at a robust average of 251,000 added jobs a month last year and 265,000 a month from December through February.

At the same time, inflation has steadily cooled: After peaking at 9.1 per cent in June 2022, it has dropped to 3.2 per cent, though it remains above the Fed’s 2 per cent target. The combination of sturdy growth and easing inflation has raised hopes that the Fed can manage to achieve a “soft landing” by fully conquering inflation without triggering a recession.

Thursday’s report was the Commerce Department’s third and final estimate of fourth-quarter GDP growth. It will release its first estimate of January-March growth on April 25.

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Canadian economy starts the year on a rebound with 0.6 per cent growth in January – CBC.ca

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The Canadian economy grew 0.6 per cent in January, the fastest growth rate in a year, while the economy likely expanded 0.4 per cent in February, Statistics Canada said Thursday.

The rate was higher than forecasted by economists, who were expecting GDP growth of 0.4 per cent in the month. December GDP was revised to a 0.1 per cent contraction from zero growth initially reported.

January’s rise, the fastest since the 0.7 per cent growth in January 2023, was helped by a rebound in educational services as public sector strikes ended in Quebec, Statistics Canada said.

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WATCH | The Canadian economy grew more than expected in January: 

Canada’s GDP increased 0.6% in January

41 minutes ago

Duration 2:20

The Canadian economy grew 0.6 per cent in January, the fastest growth rate in a year, while the economy likely expanded 0.4 per cent in February, Statistics Canada says.

“The more surprising news today was the advance estimate for February,” which suggested that underlying momentum in the economy accelerated further that month, wrote CIBC senior economist Andrew Grantham in a note.

Thursday’s data shows the Canadian economy started 2024 on a strong note after growth stalled in the second half of last year. GDP was flat or negative on a monthly basis in four of the last six months of 2023.

More time for BoC to assess

The strong rebound could allow the Bank of Canada more time to assess whether inflation is slowing sufficiently without risking a severe downturn, though the central bank has said it does not want to stay on hold longer than needed.

Because recent inflation figures have come in below the central bank’s expectations, “it appears that much of the growth we are seeing is coming from an easing of supply constraints rather than necessarily a pick-up in underlying demand,” wrote Grantham.

“As a result, we still see scope for a gradual reduction in interest rates starting in June.”

WATCH | Bank of Canada left interest rate unchanged earlier this month: 

Bank of Canada leaves interest rate unchanged, says it’s too soon to cut

22 days ago

Duration 1:56

The Bank of Canada held its key interest rate at 5 per cent on Wednesday, with governor Tiff Macklem saying it was too soon for cuts. CBC News speaks with an economist and a couple who might be forced to sell their home if interest rates don’t come down.

The central bank has maintained its key policy rate at a 22-year high of five per cent since July, but BoC governors in March agreed that conditions for rate cuts should materialize this year if the economy evolves in line with its projections.

The bank in January forecast a growth rate of 0.5 per cent in the first quarter, and Thursday’s data keeps the economy on a path of small growth in the first three months of 2024. The BoC will release new projections along with its rate announcement on April 10.

Growth in 18 out of 20 sectors

Growth in January was broad-based, with 18 of 20 sectors increasing in the month, StatsCan said. The agency said that real estate and the rental and leasing sectors grew for the third consecutive month, as activity at the offices of real estate agents and brokers drove the gain in January.

Overall, services-producing industries grew 0.7 per cent, while the goods-producing sector expanded 0.2 per cent.

In a preliminary estimate for February, StatsCan said GDP was likely up 0.4 per cent, helped by mining, quarrying, oil and gas extraction, manufacturing and the finance and insurance industries.

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Economy

Yellen Sounds Alarm on China ‘Global Domination’ Industrial Push – Bloomberg

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US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen slammed China’s use of subsidies to give its manufacturers in key new industries a competitive advantage, at the cost of distorting the global economy, and said she plans to press China on the issue in an upcoming visit.

“There is no country in the world that subsidizes its preferred, or priority, industries as heavily as China does,” Yellen said in an interview with MSNBC Wednesday — highlighting “massive” aid to electric-car, battery and solar producers. “China’s desire is to really have global domination of these industries.”

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