Canadian resale housing activity declined in the first quarter of 2008 compared to the previous quarter while new listings reached their highest quarterly level ever, according to statistics released by The Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA). The result was the most balanced resale housing market of any quarter in the past nine years.

Seasonally adjusted Canadian sales activity declined 6.8 per cent in the first quarter of 2008 compared to the fourth highest level on record, reached the previous quarter. It was the third consecutive quarterly decline since activity peaked in the second quarter last year.

Much of the decline in activity resulted from fewer transactions in Toronto during February and March. Sales activity in Toronto accounts for almost one fifth of all existing home sales in Canada. Fewer sales in British Columbia were also responsible for a significant share of the national decline in the first quarter.

The Canadian residential average price climbed 6.4 per cent year-over-year to $312,583 in the first quarter 2008. This is the smallest year-over-year price increase since the fourth quarter of 2001, reflecting a more balanced market.

Price gains did not become more modest in all provinces. In Manitoba and Newfoundland & Labrador, Canadian average house prices posted the biggest year-over-year increase ever in the first quarter of 2008.

In March, the Canadian average price was $314,279. That‘s a 4.8 per cent increase year-over-year – the smallest increase since October 2001.

“Resale housing activity is trending lower in the four most active provinces,” said CREA Chief Economist Gregory Klump. “Housing markets are becoming more balanced and price gains are becoming more modest as a result. This trend is forecast to continue, as rising mortgage carrying costs and property taxes erode affordability,” he added.

Average House Price In Canada
March 2008

20 Apr 2008

Statistics Canada has released data from the 2006 Census on ethnic origin, visible minorities, place of work and mode of transportation. Each wave of immigration to Canada has increased the ethnocultural diversity of Canada’s population. In fact, more than 200 different ethnic origins were reported in the 2006 Census. In contrast, just about 25 different ethnic groups were recorded in Canada in the 1901 Census.

The list of ethnic ancestries in 2006 includes North American Indian, Métis and Inuit, the Europeans that first settled in Canada, such as the English, French, Scottish and Irish. It also includes origins reflecting immigrants who came to Canada over the past century, such as German, Italian, Chinese, Ukrainian, Dutch, Polish, East Indian and so on.

Among newer groups reported in 2006 were Montserratan from the Caribbean and Chadian, Gabonese, Gambian and Zambian from Africa.

By 2006, 11 ethnic origins had passed the 1-million population mark. The largest group consisted of just over 10 million people who reported Canadian as their ethnic ancestry, either alone (5.7 million) or with other origins (4.3 million).

The other most frequently reported origins were English, French, Scottish, Irish, German, Italian, Chinese, North American Indian, Ukrainian and Dutch. These ancestries were either reported alone or in combination with other origins, reflecting the increasing diversity of the population.

Visible minority population surpasses 5-million mark
In 2006, an estimated 5,068,100 individuals who belonged to the visible minority population. They made up 16.2 percent of the total population in Canada.

(visible minorities are legally defined as “persons, other than Aboriginal persons, who are non-Caucasian in race or non-white in colour.”)

The visible minority population has grown steadily over the last 25 years. In 1981, when data for the employment equity-designated groups were first derived, the estimated 1.1 million visible minorities represented 4.7 percent of Canada’s total population.

In 1991, 2.5 million people were members of the visible minority population, 9.4 percent of the population. The visible minority population further increased to 3.2 million in 1996, or 11.2 percent of the total population. By 2001, their numbers had reached an estimated 3,983,800 or 13.4 percent of the total population.

Between 2001 and 2006, the visible minority population increased at a much faster pace than the total population. Its rate of growth was 27.2 percent, five times faster than the 5.4 percent increase for the population as a whole.

The growth of the visible minority population was due largely to the increasing number of recent immigrants who were from non-European countries. In 1981, 69 percent of all recent immigrants to Canada were born in regions other than Europe, and by 1991, this proportion had grown to 78 percent. The 2006 Census showed that 84 percent of the immigrants who arrived between 2001 and 2006 were born in regions other than Europe.

Consequently, the proportion of newcomers who belonged to a visible minority group also increased. In 1981, 56 percent of the newcomers who arrived in Canada in the late 1970s belonged to a visible minority group. In 1991, slightly over 7 in 10 recent immigrants were members of a visible minority group, and this proportion reached 73 percent in 2001.

Fully three-quarters of the immigrants who arrived between 2001 and 2006 belonged to a visible minority group.

If current immigration trends continue, Canada’s visible minority population will continue to grow much more quickly than the non-visible minority population. According to population projections, members of visible minority groups could account for one-fifth of the total Canadian population by 2017.

South Asians surpass Chinese as the largest visible minority group
The South Asians became Canada’s largest visible minority group in 2006, surpassing Chinese for the first time. The populations of both were well over 1 million.

The 2006 Census enumerated an estimated 1,262,900 individuals who identified themselves as South Asian, a growth rate of 38 percent from 2001. They represented one-quarter of all visible minorities, or 4 percent of the total population in Canada.

Tthe number of individuals who identified themselves as Chinese increased 18.2 percent from 2001 to 1,216,600 in 2006. Chinese accounted for 24 percent of the visible minority population and 3.9 percent of the total Canadian population.

The number of those identifying themselves as Black, the third largest visible minority group, rose 18 percent from 662,200 individuals in 2001 to an estimated 783,800. They accounted for 16 percent of the visible minority population and 2.5 percent of the total population in 2006.

Other visible minority groups included Filipinos, who represented 8.1 percent of the visible minority population, Latin Americans (6.0 percent), Arabs (5.2 percent), Southeast Asians (4.7 percent), West Asians (3.1 percent), Koreans (2.8 percent) and Japanese (1.6 percent).

15 Apr 2008

Census data showed that workers were commuting farther to work in 2006 than in 2001, and a slightly decreasing proportion were driving their car to work. The average distance travelled by workers to their place of work in 2006 was 7.6 kilometres, up from 7.2 kilometres in 2001 and 7.0 kilometres in 1996. Workers in Ontario had the highest average distance in 2006 at 8.7 kilometres.

More Workers Driving
Despite an increase in number of drivers, a lower proportion were driving to work. The census found that 14,714,300 people in the employed labour force commuted to their place of work, a 9.4 percent increase from 2001.

The vast majority, an estimated 10,644,300 workers, drove to work in a car, truck or van. That was a 7.2 percent increase from 2001, the equivalent of 714,900 more drivers on the road across Canada. However, this increase was well below the gain of just under 1 million between 1996 and 2001.

Despite this growth, the proportion of workers who drove to work declined from 73.8percent in 2001 to 72.3 percent in 2006.

Upward trend among workers travelling as passenger or using public transit
The 2006 Census found that 1,133,200 workers travelled to work as a passenger in a car, up 22.6 percent from 2001.

An estimated 1,622,700 people usually travelled to work on some form of public transportation, such as bus, streetcar, subway, light rail transit, commuter train or ferry, a 15.4 percent increase. Over the five-year period, the proportion that took some form of public transit increased from 10.5 percent to 11.0 percent.

The rest, an estimated 939,300, walked to work, up 6.6 percent, and 195,500 bicycled to work, a 20 percent increase.

10 Apr 2008

Following two months of large gains, employment edged up slightly in March (+15,000). A surge of entrants into the labour market caused the unemployment rate to move up 0.2 percentage points to 6.0 percent. Canada’s participation rate reached a new record high of 68.0 percent in March. Over the past 12 months, Canadian employment grew by an estimated 1.9 percent.

Part-time employment was up in March (+34,000), the largest increase in part time since November 2006. Over the past 12 months, full-time employment has grown at almost twice the pace (+2.1 percent) of part-time work (+1.1 percent).

Alberta and British Columbia were the only provinces with notable employment gains in March. These provinces also set new records, as British Columbia’s employment rate reached a high of 64.0 percent, and Alberta’s participation rate hit 74.7 percent, the highest of any province.

In March, employment gains were posted in transportation and warehousing and natural resources, with losses in information, culture and recreation.

Transportation and warehousing
Employment in the transportation and warehousing industry rose by an estimated 20,000 in March, offset by losses in information, culture and recreation (-24,000). Over the past 12 months, employment in transportation and warehousing has risen 5.1 percent with gains mostly in Ontario and Quebec.

Natural resources
Employment edged up in natural resources in March, after a dip over the previous two months, leaving this industry unchanged from one year ago.

Goods-producing sector
Over the March 2007 to March 2008 period, employment in the goods-producing sector was little changed, as gains in the construction industry were offset by manufacturing losses. At the same time, service sector employment grew by 2.4 percent, with public administration; professional scientific and technical services; health care and social assistance as well as transportation and warehousing adding the most workers.

Private sector
Over the first quarter of 2008, employment growth among private sector employees was stronger than that of the public sector. The growth among private sector employees was driven by gains in professional, scientific and technical services and construction. Self-employment fell in the first quarter of 2008.

British Columbia
British Columbia led employment gains in March with an estimated increase of 15,000, pushing the employment rate to a new record high of 64.0 percent. Employment gains were widespread across several industries. With higher participation, the province’s unemployment rate edged up 0.2 percentage points to 4.3 percent in March. Over the last 12 months, employment in British Columbia was up 55,000 (+2.4 percent), with half of the gains in construction.

Alberta
In March, Alberta added 10,000 workers, pushing the province’s employment level above the two million mark for the first time. Alberta leads the country’s 12 month employment growth (+3.4 percent), with strength in both the goods and the service sector. The March unemployment rate of 3.4 percent remains the lowest in Canada.

Ontario
Following a strong February, Ontario’s employment was unchanged in March as gains in part-time employment (+23,000) offset losses in full-time work (-25,000). The province’s unemployment rate edged up 0.3 percentage points to 6.4 percent in March, the result of a boost in the labour force. Over the past 12 months, employment has risen by 1.8 percent, driven by gains in educational services; public administration and business, building and other support services.

Quebec
Employment in Quebec was also little changed in March, while the unemployment rate increased by 0.3 percentage points to 7.3 percent. Over the last 12 months, employment has risen 1.5 percent in the province, with the largest gains in construction and professional, scientific and technical services industries.

Strongest growth among older workers
In March, employment among older workers (55 years and older) increased by 24,000, building on the strong gains of the past year. Older workers have shown the fastest employment increase of all age groups over the past 12 months, with an annual growth rate of 7.8 percent, well above the 0.9 percent for core-aged (25 to 54 years) workers.

4 Apr 2008