Canadians are seeing higher inflation and one of the country’s biggest banks thinks you might want to get used to it. BMO senior economist Douglas Porter wrote to capital markets customers to clarify a position in a national newspaper. The outlet had isolated his quote, and used it to downplay concerns about inflation. In reality, […]
Canadian households devote an astronomical amount of income just to carry their debt payments. Data from the Bank of International Settlements (BIS) shows Canadian households have a very high debt service ratio (DSR). The ratio dropped in Q4 2020 slightly, but it’s still much higher than any other G7 country. Not even the US housing […]
Canadian new housing supply is slowing, but no need to worry about a lack of inventory coming to market. Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) data show new housing starts slipped lower in August. It might be premature to worry they might be falling too low though. Starts are significantly higher than usual, and not […]
Canada’s red hot real estate market continued to cool, according to new numbers from the industry. Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) data shows the seasonally adjusted sales to new listings ratio (SNLR) fell in August. The relative measure of demand is one of the core indicators used to determine how tight the market is. Since […]
Canadian inflation looks less transitory by the day, as costs surge higher and higher. Statistics Canada (Stat Can) data shows the consumer price index (CPI) made a sharp climb in August. Growth is now well in excess of the base effect, and not just an illusion. One of the biggest drivers has been shelter costs, […]
Canadian real estate saw the fewest home sales in over a year, as the market continues to cool. Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) data shows existing-home sales fell in August. Despite falling, the month printed the second biggest number ever. Sales are also still much higher than normal. That said, it was a very sharp […]
Canadian housing supply plays a role in home price growth, but doesn’t explain all of it. The Bank of Canada (BoC) published a paper on Canadian Housing Supply Elasticities. In it the researchers explain supply plays a big role, but not to the extent we’ve seen. Over the short-term, it fails to explain the extreme […]
Young Canadians aren’t interested in joining the trades, and it’s a big problem. RBC Economics took a look at skilled workers, and the anticipated shortage. The labor shortage isn’t just due to a large demographic cliff though. Not enough young adults are attracted to the field, nor are new immigrants. This squeeze can result in […]
Canadians must be hoping for a recession every year, since they’ve never made more money. A National Bank of Canada (NBC) analysis shows household wealth surged in Q2 2021. Their wealth actually surged so fast, the ratio of debt hasn’t looked smaller in almost 2 decades. The bank expects this to fund a significant spending […]
Canadian building investment is falling, and it’s due to a lack of housing investment. Statistics Canada (Stat Can) data shows total building investment fell in July. Taking a dive into the data, we can see this is due entirely to falling residential investment. While it dropped, no need to worry about an inventory squeeze. The […]
