AB Economic Fundamentals 2008-12

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1208ALTA
Oil firms trim 2009 spending

CALGARY - EnCana Corp. and Petro-Canada moved to cut 2009 capital spending Thursday to cope with falling commodity prices and market turmoil, but left themselves enough room to change plans quickly in case the economy swings to the better, or worse.

After years of boosting budgets to increase production from far-flung reserves and the expensive oilsands, Canada`s big oil companies are retrenching to cope with crude prices that have fallen by close to $100 a barrel from July peaks.

http://www.canada.com/edmontonjournal/news...49-e177cc47d360

 

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1208ALTA
Ottawa rejects Alberta cash plea

Premier Ed Stelmach called on Ottawa Thursday to cough up some cash to support Alberta`s carbon capture and storage efforts--a critical component of a national climate-change plan--but his request was rejected by the Harper government.

Speaking to reporters at the release of a new provincial energy strategy, Stelmach said what`s good for Ontario is good for Alberta, and that it`s only fair that the federal government allocate dollars to carbon capture if it`s going to bail out struggling automobile manufacturers.

http://www.canada.com/calgaryherald/news/s...cd-1e7ca4387371

 

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1208ALTA
Stelmach turns to Texas in search for energy allies

Premier Ed Stelmach released his long-term energy strategy Thursday with Alberta`s national image in mind, but a thought for Texas, too.

Stelmach meets Gov. Rick Perry next week in America`s energy capital, seeking a friend to stand by him in the looming storm of environmental costs and regulation.

He sure can`t find any in Ottawa.

http://www.canada.com/calgaryherald/news/s...74-c94f76f537b4

 

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1208CALG
Hike in rental vacancy rate cools prices

Calgary landlords are doing something these days they haven`t in years--wait by the phone.

Two-bedroom apartments still cost more here than in any other big Canadian city, but the once-stratospheric rent increases have fallen back closer to Earth, and vacancy rates have bounced from the crisis-level 0.5 per cent two years ago to 2.1 per cent now, according to a report Thursday from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp.

http://www.canada.com/calgaryherald/news/c...c6-aa82e5c4fa5a

 

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1208CALG
Police ready if Cecil crime relocates

The embattled Cecil Hotel was the subject of more calls to police than any other location in the city last year, a senior police officer said Thursday.

And when enough wasn`t being done to make a significant dent in the amount of crime, police stepped in to ask the city to suspend the Cecil tavern`s business licence, said Supt. Trevor Daroux, director of field operations for the Calgary Police Service.

http://www.canada.com/calgaryherald/news/c...79-ebb324b1a3c2

 

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1208CALG
New home prices take 1.6 per cent hit

New house prices in Calgary declined by 1.6 per cent in October on a year-overyear basis--the largest decline for the metropolitan area since November 1991, said Statistics Canada.

The New Housing Price Index, released Thursday by the federal agency, showed that, on a national level, new home prices year-overyear increased by 1.5 per cent, a slower pace than the 2.1 per cent advance recorded in September and the smallest annual increase since October 1999.

http://www.canada.com/calgaryherald/news/c...81-3f493e3052a9

 

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1208ALTA
Alberta falls behind in land sale race

Saskatchewan and British Columbia each racked up record land sale results after the final auctions of oil and gas rights Thursday, contrasting with a dismal performance by Alberta.

The Saskatchewan government cracked the billion-dollar mark for oil and gas land sales for the first time in its history after taking in almost $50 million from its December auction of oil and gas rights, bringing its calendar-year tally to $1.12 billion. On the West Coast, B. C. finished with an impressive $2.66 billion after its final sale of the year netted $92 million.

http://www.canada.com/calgaryherald/news/c...95-8ced7493d2fe

 

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1208REDR
First lots of 400-lot recreational vehicle resort on Gull Lake approved

The first 99 lots of a proposed 400-lot recreational vehicle resort on Gull Lake were approved by Lacombe County on Thursday.

DeGraff`s BuiltGreen Resort will be built on 120 acres just north of Wilson`s Beach.

The complete project would include condominium RV sites, a lodge, interpretive centre, hot tub and swimming pool and private boat launch.

http://www.albertalocalnews.com/reddeeradv...e_approved.html

 

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1208REDR
Rental shortage eases, but not all benefit

Landlords are having to pull vacancy signs out of storage as an increasing number of rental units become empty.

The average vacancy rate for apartments in Alberta communities with 10,000 or more people has jumped by nearly a full percentage point in the past year, according to Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp.`s fall rental market survey. The figure increased from 1.6 per cent in October 2007 to 2.5 per cent for the same month this year.

http://www.albertalocalnews.com/reddeeradv...ll_benefit.html

 

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1208ALTA
Cold enough for the pine beetle?

EDMONTON - Ever since mountain pine beetles swept into the province, Albertans shivering through any deep freeze have sought small comfort in hoping the chill was killing the forest-destroying invader.

"Cold enough for you?"

"At least, it should freeze the mountain pine beetles."

http://www.canada.com/edmontonjournal/news...7d-ceb1abf3bb5c

 

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1208ALTA
Home builders sweetening deals with price guarantees, prepaid condo fees

For every challenge there is an opportunity. If a vacation is in your plans, or you are considering purchasing a vehicle or home, there are some sweet deals out there.

Because constant news of a topsy-turvy economy has caused fearful consumers to rein in their purse strings, many retailers have responded with a range of sales incentives.

Tour companies and airlines offer tantalizing prices on vacations to Sunbelt destinations.

http://www.canada.com/edmontonjournal/news...da-3ed9a0a6b389

 

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1208CALG
Cecil`s $10M price slammed


Pricey plans for the city to acquire the Cecil Hotel have some critics cringing.

The Sun has learned the cost for the notorious watering hole is more than $10 million, a deal that aldermen will debate behind closed doors Monday.

A tentative deal to acquire the 96-year-old building at 401 4 Ave. S.E. was approved by a city committee earlier this week and the only hurdle is for a majority of council members to sign off on it. But the plan is already under fire.

http://calsun.canoe.ca/News/Alberta/2008/1...739581-sun.html

 

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1208ALTA
Petro-Canada keeps Fort Hills options open

Petro-Canada has its eyes firmly fixed on the present while keeping its plans for the future of its $24-billion Fort Hills oilsands project just as firmly in suspense.

Chief executive Ron Brenneman skirted the subject of how the company would process bitumen from the proposed mine during an interview Friday.

http://www.canada.com/calgaryherald/news/c...e0-5698594a41b7

 

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1208ALTA
Oilsands output at risk

Deferred and cancelled oilsands projects could result in 300,000 fewer barrels a day flowing from northeastern Alberta by 2017, the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers said Friday.

The industry association expects oilsands spending to drop more than 25 per cent, to $16 billion in 2009 from a previous estimate of more than $20 billion. Overall upstream spending--including the East Coast offshore -- is expected to fall about 15 per cent to $43 billion from$50 billion in 2008, according to Greg Stringham, the group`s vice-president of markets and fiscal policy.

http://www.canada.com/calgaryherald/news/c...c7-2cc19e09f45a

 

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1208CALG
What are realtors doing to weather the storm?

Oh, the weather outside is frightful. The economy isn`t much better, and both are bad news for realtors, who generally suffer a slowdown at this time of year, but are now facing a surplus of unsold real estate.

Today would appear to be a great time to buy as selection is very good, interest rates have dropped, and it is definitely a buyer`s market before inventory gets taken up.

http://www.canada.com/calgaryherald/news/l...48-d7504f493b77

 

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1208ALTA
Drilling crews first to feel pain of cuts

They`re the first ones to feel the effects of an economic downturn, and low commodity prices are presenting oil-well drilling crews and related workers with a bleak employment outlook for 2009, say industry groups.

Oil prices in the $40 to $50 range combined with global economic turmoil are translating into layoffs already across Western Canada and that trend will continue in the first quarter -- the make-or-break, busiest time of the year for crews.

http://www.canada.com/calgaryherald/news/s...89-f07dc2305e84

 

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1208CALG
`Great correction` nearly over in market

Joe Buggie has been in the business of pitching real estate in and around Calgary for more than a quarter-century.

While he`s been able to successfully ride out the waves of volatility over that time, he`s ready for a return to something akin to a normal housing market.

Hey, who isn`t?

http://www.canada.com/calgaryherald/news/n...fd-11ef3f08db11

 

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1208CALG
Consumer uncertainty magnifies slowdown

To say this hasn`t been a typical market is to say Calgary got a light dusting of snow last weekend.

With just one month left in the year, figures from the Calgary Real Estate Board reveal that while November showed all the historical signs of a slowdown in seasonal activity, it was also a reflection of what has been happening all year: - The month-end inventory was up just a tad from a year ago, but the 5,083 homes on the list is the lowest count since back in February and well off the peak of 7,099 in May. - The number of new listings recorded by the board last month, 1,567 of them, was off nearly 20 per cent from November of 2007 and for the year to date are down just a bit more than one per cent. - As for the number of homes changing hands, last month saw just 670 deals finalized, down from 1,103 a year ago. So far this year, 13,011 sales have been made compared with 17,592 for the same period last year. - The average selling price for November rang in at $435,471, a drop of almost six per cent from 12 months earlier.

http://www.canada.com/calgaryherald/news/n...b1-f0b997548589

 

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1208ALTA
Alberta Liberals vote for change

A lberta Liberals elected Calgary MLA David Swann as their next leader Saturday, and the new Grit boss already has an ambitious plan to travel the province, triple membership and possibly rename the party.

Swann, an environmental champion and medical doctor by training, defeated fellow Calgary MLA Dave Taylor and former Edmonton MLA Mo Elsalhy with a narrow majority on the first ballot of a preferential mail-in vote.

http://www.canada.com/calgaryherald/news/s...d0-6e1ed337a1aa

 

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1208CALG
Weathering the economic storm

Certain key dates in history are remembered for dramatically and drastically changing the world. Dec. 7, 1941. Sept. 11, 2001.

They were pivotal dates on a global scale.

Sept. 15, 2008, will also go down for ushering in the current global economic climate--likely "the worst economic situation since the Great Depression," according to a State of the Economy (Calgary Semi-Annual Economic Review) report by Calgary Economic Development, obtained by the Herald and scheduled to be released on Monday.

http://www.canada.com/calgaryherald/news/c...81-7f585b7065d8