Thoughts on BC Politics and More

. . . . High interest rates are putting a drag on the economy as consumers pull back spending, causing a slowdown in sales for businesses. But strong population growth appears to be offsetting some of those effects, including in the labour market. "Today's report is certainly impressive at first blush, particularly the towering rise in full-time jobs," wrote BMO chief economist Douglas Porter in a client note. "However, it's staggeringly clear that the results are flattered by ongoing massive population gains, and the labour market is thus actually gradually cooling" . . . . CLICK HERE for the full story

When governments talk about the employment recovery following COVID-19, it is important to understand where job growth has actually occurred. A new study published by the Fraser Institute today finds that since the onset of COVID, government-sector job growth outpaced private-sector growth – in all 10 provinces! Nationally, the number of government-sector jobs increased 11.8%, while the number of private sector jobs increased only 3.3%. Of the four largest provinces, BC had the fastest rate of government sector job growth at 22.6% and the slowest rate of private sector job growth at 0.3%. Alberta had the lowest rate of government sector job growth at 8.9%, and the fastest rate of private sector job growth at 6.2%. See where the other provinces placed – and find out which four provinces experienced negative private sector job growth --- CLICK HERE