International conflicts are dominating the news; China is vying for power in the Pacific Ocean, and in most other parts of the world; Russia is causing trouble wherever it can, and the Middle East remains tense as it has always been. Meanwhile, another international dispute is going on in our own backyard right before our…
How the NDP can still be competitive in oil-and-gas rich provinces like Alberta and Saskatchewan when it is devoutly anti-energy is beyond me
My dad, Anthony “Tony” Diotte was a locomotive engineer at Algoma Steel in Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., a long-time executive for his United Transportation Union local as well as a staunch supporter of the NDP until his death in 1994. But I can guarantee you my father would not vote for the federal NDP today.…
Study on affordable cities to buy a house says Regina, Saskatoon, Winnipeg, Halifax-Dartmouth, Calgay and Edmonton are the top six
Just how feasible would it be for a household on a median income to purchase real estate in Canada? According to a new study by Zoocasa of 15 major urban centres across the country, such a household would be able to afford the local benchmark-priced home in their region in a total of eight markets,…
President Greg Moreau talks about how the largest distributor and retailer of professional hair care goods in Canada plans to keep building the brand
Greg Moreau is president and CEO of Chatters. Tell me a bit about Chatters. What do you specialize in? Moreau: Chatters is the largest distributor and retailer of professional hair care goods in Canada, and the third largest in North America with a 60/40 business of retail to service. From products to service, our specialty…
Prairie towns and villages are becoming relics of the past. Formerly bustling main streets are lined with boarded-up businesses, inhabited by aging retirees who carry the memories of a bygone era
What do you think is Canada’s riskiest business? Childhood on our family farm taught me the answer to that question. Despite years of heartbreaking disappointments, my father was a perfect example of the adage “hope springs eternal.” Each spring, he would sing happily on our tractor while seeding wheat, barley and oats. Then we hoped…
Alberta had the second highest level of labour productivity in 2018 among the provinces ($78.50 per hour) after Saskatchewan ($79.90) and just ahead of Newfoundland and Labrador ($76.90), according to ATB Financial’s Economics & Research Team. Productivity for Canada as a whole was $59.40 per hour. In its daily economic update, The Owl, ATB said…
Dave Yager has spent nearly half a century in Alberta’s oil and natural gas industry and 40 years in journalism, notably with the oilfield trade magazine, The Roughneck. His first book, From Miracle to Menace: Alberta, A Carbon Story, combines his extensive experience in a well-written and fact-centred analysis of the economics, politics and history…
StatsCan study over 66 years provides insight into which provinces experienced the most growth over three generations
Data released Thursday by Statistics Canada may be a couple of years old but it illustrates the importance of the oil and gas sector to the economies of several provinces. “According to a new study, from 1950 to 2016, real gross domestic income (GDI) per capita grew fastest in provinces with large oil and gas…
The economic damage to the energy industry is due largely to government regulatory and tax policies
By Steven Globerman and Joel Emes The Fraser Institute Canadian oil and gas companies face major problems, in great part due to government policy. Legal restrictions on the expansion of pipeline capacity have restricted exports of oil, shrinking profit margins. The subsequent price decline for Western Canada Select oil spurred former Alberta premier Rachel Notley…
Fraser Institute report says overdependence on American market is hammering the Canadian oil industry
Just how important is market access and lack of pipeline capacity to the Canadian economy? A report released on Tuesday by the Fraser Institute, a Canadian public policy think-tank, said the issue is driving down the price of Canadian oil, costing the country’s energy sector $20.6 billion in lost revenues last year. “Without sufficient pipelines…