Canada column for
Sunday, Aug. 5/18
THE CANADIAN REPORT
(c) By Jim Fox
Canada’s
merchandise trade surplus with the United States rose in June to $4.1 billion
with a record amount of goods shipped south.
The U.S., which is
Canada’s largest trading partner, received $37.1 billion in exports, an
increase of 2.5 percent that was largely in cars and light trucks.
At the same time,
Canada’s imports from the U.S. rose 0.3 percent to $32.9 billion.
Statistics Canada
said the country’s merchandise trade deficit with the world dipped to $626
million, the smallest in 17 months.
This improvement,
up 4.1 percent in exports, to a record $50.7 billion was mainly because of
higher exports of energy products and aircraft.
Energy exports mostly
in oil climbed 7.1 percent to $9.9 billion, the highest since October 2014.
Overall, Canada’s
imports were down 0.2 percent to $51.3 billion while transportation equipment
and parts exports were 18.9 percent higher at a record $2.5 billion largely for
business jets.
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The Canadian
government is considering further changes to the carbon pricing system for
heavy emitters.
The action is over
concerns of the impact on industries and competitiveness fears due to U.S. tax
cuts, tariffs and environmental policy roll backs.
Steps include
helping some businesses avoid losing an edge due to the controversial carbon
price plan.
Another issue for Environment
Canada is how to deal with new Ontario Premier Doug Ford’s Conservative
government scrapping the carbon tax.
He said the program
was too costly for families and does nothing to help the environment.
As a result, Ford
said the government would cut gasoline prices by 10 cents a liter (38 cents a
U.S. gallon).
---
News in brief:
- It has cost the
Canadian government $270 million in the past 18 months to handle would-be
immigrants who have entered Canada illegally. The Immigration and Refugee Board
has processed 30,000 people during that time and expects the number to grow by
another 20,000 next year. Provincial and city governments have requested more
financial assistance from the federal government to deal with the influx.
- Molson Coors
Canada will enter a joint venture to develop non-alcoholic cannabis-infused
products when the narcotic is legalized on Oct. 17. Drinks developed by the
joint venture with Hydropothecary Corporation could include beer. The company
is “excited” by the potential to offer Canadian consumers “new experiences,”
said Molson Coors Canada head Frederic Landtmeters. There are no plans to sell
beverages to U.S. states that have legalized marijuana.
---
Facts and figures:
Canada’s dollar is
higher at 77.07 cents U.S. while the U.S. dollar returns $1.297 in Canadian
funds (plus bank exchange fees).
The Bank of Canada’s key interest rate is steady
at 1.5 percent while the prime-lending rate is 3.7 percent.
Stock markets are mixed, with the Toronto
exchange index up at 16,425 points while the TSX Venture index is lower at 701
points.
The average price for gas in Canada is slightly
lower at $1.324 a liter or $5.03 (Canadian) for a U.S. gallon.
Lotto 6/49: (Aug. 1) 13, 19, 22, 29, 36 and 42; bonus 35.
(July 28) 5, 11, 17, 20, 28 and 45; bonus 7. Lotto Max: (July 27) 8, 11,
14, 17, 26, 30 and 36; bonus 48.
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Regional briefs:
- Ontario’s new
Conservative government will cancel the basic income pilot project that paid
4,000 low-income people in Hamilton, Brantford, Thunder Bay and Lindsay in
place of welfare. Single participants received up to $16,989 a year while
couples got up to $24,027. In its place,
the government will make major reforms to overhaul a “disjointed patchwork
system,” said Social Services Minister Lisa MacLeod.
- The hot real
estate market in Metro Vancouver has chilled as sales slumped to their lowest
level in 18 years while prices remain steady. The Greater Vancouver Real Estate
Board said 2,070 properties were sold last month, a 30-percent drop. The
average price for all residential properties was about $1.1 million, similar to
Toronto.
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Jim Fox can be reached at canadareport@hotmail.com
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