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CA Economic Fundamentals 2008-12

joeiannuzzi

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Banks buck rate-cut trend by pocketing some profit

TORONTO - Bay Street`s profit margins are starting to come under pressure as official interest rates creep closer to zero, prompting retail banks to change the rules of the game so customers pay more.

While the Bank of Canada on Tuesday cut interest rates to the lowest level since the 1950s, the country`s five big banks indicated they would no longer march in lock step with the central bank.

http://www.canada.com/edmontonjournal/news...a0-d087fff6c1e0
 

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Rae steps down: `I know how to count`

OTTAWA -- Toronto MP Michael Ignatieff is set to be acclaimed as federal Liberal leader today, after his chief rival and longtime friend Bob Rae abruptly halted his own campaign to replace Stephane Dion.

Rae, a fellow Toronto MP, bowed out after calculating he could not beat Ignatieff in a leadership showdown at a caucus meeting scheduled for today and after failing to persuade the party`s executive to hold a grassroots leadership election using online and phone ballots.

http://www.canada.com/edmontonjournal/news...09-a24987dd80a4
 

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Canada-EU open skies deal under dark cloud

A historic "open skies" pact between Canada and the European Union promises to offer Canadian air travellers more choice and lower prices, but industry observers warn that a slumping global economy will prevent airlines from taking full advantage of the new freedoms in the near term.

The agreement, the initial stage of which is expected to go into effect next year, would allow European airlines to fly to Canada from anywhere in the 27-member bloc while reciprocal rights would be granted to Canadian carriers.

http://www.thestar.com/Business/article/551246
 

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Recession will hit Canadians hard: TD

OTTAWA -- Canada`s economy will continue to contract until mid-2009, pushing the jobless rate above eight per cent and robbing Canadians of more than $50 billion in income, TD Bank projected Wednesday, abandoning a previously favoured more optimistic scenario.

"We are witnessing a rare instance in history of a synchronized global recession," it said in its grim forecast, issued in the wake of the Bank of Canada`s acknowledgement this week that Canada is entering a recession. "At the heart of the global recession is the ongoing difficulties in credit markets, which know no borders."

http://www.leaderpost.com/Business/Recessi...0850/story.html
 

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Canadian banks dropping fixed mortgage rates

TORONTO -- More major Canadian banks are dropping many of their fixed mortgage rates by one-fifth of a percentage point as of today, following the lead of the Royal Bank of Canada (TSX:RY) -- lowering the cost of borrowing to buy or keep a home.

The moves come after the Bank of Canada lowered the rate of overnight loans between banks on Tuesday to 1.5 per cent -- a drop of three-quarters of a percentage point and the lowest level since 1958. The major banks tend to adjust their mortgage rates within a few days of each other, responding to changes either in the central bank`s rates or the bond markets.

http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/business/...gage_rates.html
 

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Growth hope for real estate derivatives

LONDON - The global property derivatives market is likely to keep growing despite the financial crisis, as fund managers and property firms seek to better manage their real estate risks, experts said.

The fledgling market, which offers over-the-counter trading mainly in swaps based on property indexes, could grow by about 7% year-on-year to US$11-billion by end-2008, said Rawle Parris, head of property derivatives at ING Wholesale Banking.

http://www.nationalpost.com/todays_paper/s...html?id=1059766
 

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Canada`s world debt hits 33-year low

Canada`s net international debt fell last summer to a 33-year low of $58.4 billion, as the value of foreign assets rose more than international liabilities, Statistics Canada reported yesterday.

The reduction would be greater if the steeper fall in the value of foreign portfolio holdings of Canadian stocks than Canadian holdings of foreign stocks is taken into account, it added.

http://www.ottawacitizen.com/Business/Cana...9990/story.html
 

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Mortgage industry takes warning in stride

VANCOUVER -- Canada`s mortgage industry says it`s not concerned about the impact of rising defaults as a result of the recession that has set foot in Canada.

Despite a warning from the Bank of Canada yesterday that mortgage and loan defaults could rise "significantly" if the global financial crisis deteriorates further, the industry says its products and lending arrangements are safer than those in the U.S., where millions have lost their homes through defaults.

http://www.edmontonsun.com/Business/News/2...720211-sun.html
 

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Rental housing demand rises across the country

Rising home ownership costs are driving Canadians back into the rental market, according to Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp.

The Crown corporation said Thursday that its survey of 34 major centres found the national vacancy rate fell to 2.2 per cent in October 2008, down from 2.6 per cent from a year earlier.

http://www.vancouversun.com/news/todays-pa...5872/story.html
 

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Tax-evading software focus of CRA crackdown

Canada Revenue Agency has launched a national investigation targeting small- and medium-sized businesses that may be using software to help them falsify sales data.

A recent investigation by Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) officials into four Vancouver-area businesses uncovered the use of software made specifically to erase sales data from a cash register and avoid paying taxes.

http://www.ottawacitizen.com/Technology/ev...4888/story.html
 

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Gifting shelters not always built to last

It`s that season again, the tax-shelter season, where promoters attempt to sell their latest schemes to unsuspecting, tax-burdened Canadians.

Not surprisingly, the Canada Revenue Agency has once again warned taxpayers to be wary of tax-shelter promotions, especially those involving donation arrangements.

http://www.canada.com/edmontonjournal/news...91-ab7381ecdc1d
 

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Economic crisis ramps up infrastructure spending

OTTAWA - Canada`s crumbling cities are on the verge of getting a multibillion-dollar makeover through a federal strategy that is being billed by the government not only as a shot in the arm for a fragile economy, but also as a long-awaited plan to rebuild the backbone -- from roads to sewage treatment -- of our communities.

For years, the country`s growing "infrastructure deficit" took a back seat to other priorities. Now it is on the lips of virtually every politician as a key solution for tackling an economic slowdown by providing funds to companies bidding for contracts and putting people to work.

http://www.canada.com/edmontonjournal/news...31-dbb7ab057c23
 

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Rule aims to ease hiring of skilled foreign workers

OTTAWA - The federal government is changing a key immigration rule it says will help Canadian companies hire skilled foreign labour more easily.

Ottawa is to announce today that such skilled professionals as engineers, accountants or professors from the U.S. or Mexico will be able to get three-year-long work permits instead of one-year permits.

http://www.canada.com/edmontonjournal/news...30-0af8b7dd0792
 

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UK house prices seen falling 10 % in 2009

LONDON – House prices in Britain will fall a further 10 per cent next year as the recession deepens and exacts a heavier toll on households, a leading housing index predicted on Monday.

Property website Rightmove said it expects average house prices across the country – as measured by amount sellers advertise them for – to drop by 10 per cent before the end of 2009, bringing the cost of an average home down from 217,808 pounds (US$327,471) now to just 196,027 pounds at the end of next year.

http://www.thestar.com/Business/article/553837
 

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Canadians lacking economic literacy amid crisis

Most Canadians feel ill-equipped to make economic decisions with more than half not knowing if their mutual funds are insured and with four in 10 unable to do basic interest-rate calculations.

In fact, only 13 per cent knew that mutual-fund investments are not insured against loss, with 63 per cent not knowing and 10 per cent saying 75 per cent of such investments were insured.

http://www.canada.com/calgaryherald/news/c...a8-d6dc2e54ab8d
 

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Canada`s sewage and water systems are a rusting wreck

No one has to explain to Steve Horoky the problems facing the rusting wreck that is Canada`s sewer, water treatment and drinking water system.

The Windsor, Ont., resident`s basement is a high water mark of the country`s outdated and under-maintained sewers, a legacy of years of funding cuts.

Three times in the past 12 years Horoky`s basement has flooded, thanks to storm water that Windsor`s sewer network couldn`t handle.

http://www.vancouversun.com/news/todays-pa...0830/story.html
 

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Manpower Canada forsees `hopeful hiring climate` in early 2009

In a break from the recent steady flow of negative economic news, staffing service Manpower Canada says its latest survey of employers points to a "hopeful" hiring outlook for early 2009.

Manpower, which conducts a quarterly survey in 33 countries where it operates, said last week that Canadian employers foresee a "mild hiring climate" in the January-March period.

That contrasts with most other countries surveyed: only Canada, the United States and Switzerland showed improvement in hiring expectations compared with the previous quarter.

http://www.torontosun.com/money/2008/12/17/7774916-sun.html
 

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Transit needs $23B in spending, advocates say

City dwellers itching to ditch their cars in favour of riding buses, subways and light-rail are getting some tantalizing encouragement as municipalities focus on filling gaps in the public transit system.

Barely a day goes by without a city council somewhere unveiling or approving plans to modernize and expand everything from fleets of buses to light-rail lines in hopes of getting more gas-guzzling, polluting cars and SUVs off the road.

http://www.ottawacitizen.com/news/todays-p...4077/story.html
 

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Conference Board calls for $13 billion in stimulus spending

The Bank of Canada needs help from the federal government to fight the recession, the Conference Board of Canada warned yesterday.

The warning came as it called for up to $13 billion in federal spending to put money into the hands of the unemployed, to improve infrastructure and ensure businesses have access to credit.

"Action of this magnitude would create a total deficit in fiscal year 2009-10 of $20 billion or more, but that is a price worth paying for a faster recovery and a return of consumer and investor confidence," said board chief economist Glen Hodgson.

http://www.ottawacitizen.com/news/todays-p...4147/story.html
 
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