My take on today’s second-quarter Gross Domestic Product (GDP) release follows: Economy Shrinks, But Dodges Recession Canada’s GDP was lower at the end of June ($1,327,118 million) than at the end of last year ($1,328,606 million). Although the Canadian economy is smaller now than it was two quarters ago, it is technically not in recession because it did not shrink […]
Read moreIn the second quarter of 2008, record oil prices outweighed the continuing manufacturing crisis, the worst services deficit ever recorded, and widening deficits in investment income and current transfers. The Surplus in Perspective The rise of Canada’s current-account surplus to $6.8 billion in the second quarter is positive news for the Canadian economy. However, this surplus is still less than last year’s […]
Read moreThe United Steelworkers union has been on strike at three Potash Corporation of Saskatchewan mines since August 7. This labour dispute raises much broader questions about the distribution of resource rents. The following op-ed, printed in today’s Regina Leader-Post, updates the op-ed printed in the Saskatoon StarPheonix before the strike. Workers, citizens miss potash profits The Leader-Post (Regina) Thursday, August 21, […]
Read moreComparing today’s Consumer Price Index figures for July 2008 with Labour Force Survey figures for the same month reveals that the annual increase in Canada’s average hourly wage (4.0%) barely exceeded the annual increase in Canadian consumer prices (3.4%). As a result, real wages rose by only 0.6% over the past year. In fact, relative to inflation, workers in Ontario […]
Read moreIn Saturday’s Globe and Mail, Brian Milner summarized Vitaliy Katsenelson’s historical analysis of American stock markets. He distinguishes “bull markets” from “range-bound markets”: . . . growth patterns may be similar. What separates the two are stock valuations, which soar to such unrealistic heights during raging bull periods that it takes years for them to come back down to normal […]
Read moreSeveral American labour groups have filed a complaint against Wal-Mart for instructing its employees to vote against Obama and other Democrats. I first got wind of this electoral controversy a couple of weeks ago through The Hamilton Spectator, which printed an Associated Press story that succinctly outlines Wal-Mart’s actions and the Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA) against which these actions […]
Read moreThe United Steelworkers’ union has just issued the following release: SHAREHOLDER ALERT: PCS STOCK UNDERPERFORMING COMPETITOR DURING STRIKE SASKATOON, SK — United Steelworkers’ (USW) Western Canada Director Stephen Hunt said Thursday that investors should use their influence to urge Potash Corporation of Saskatchewan (PCS) management to negotiate a settlement with Steelworkers on strike at three mines near Saskatoon. “PCS stock […]
Read moreMy take on today’s grisly Labour Force Survey follows: Private-Sector Meltdown Canada’s private sector eliminated 95,000 jobs in July. In other words, nearly 1% of Canadian private-sector jobs disappeared in a single month. The creation of 30,000 public-sector jobs and 11,000 self-employed positions offset less than half of this loss. Although manufacturing accounts for below a fifth of private-sector employment, […]
Read moreYesterday, I appeared before the Standing Committee on Finance and Economic Affairs at Queen’s Park. The committee is reviewing the Ontario Health Premium, as required by the legislation that implemented this levy. My assessment of the premium starts from the premise that the Government of Ontario needs more revenue not only for healthcare, but also for industrial development, education and […]
Read moreCanada has the third-lowest business taxes of ten countries examined in a study released as part of KPMG’s 2008 Competitive Alternatives report. The spin from KPMG has been that “If the provinces follow the federal lead and reduce their rates as well, Canada’s advantage will be enhanced.” Canadians should be asking a different question. If we already have a substantial “tax […]
Read moreAs has been widely reported in the business press, members of the United Steelworkers union employed at the Potash Corporation of Saskatchewan’s Allan, Cory and Patience Lake mines voted 96% on Monday night for a strike mandate. The three locals served strike notice on Wednesday, which will put them in a legal strike position tomorrow. The company responded by serving […]
Read moreRegarding the Premiers’ announcement in Quebec City last week, I would reiterate what I wrote a year ago about a very similar federal proclamation by then-Minister of Industry, Maxime Bernier. The main piece of real news is that Premiers have attached financial penalties to the existing Agreement on Internal Trade (AIT): Premiers announced an enhanced and effective dispute resolution mechanism […]
Read moreThis morning, Statistics Canada released the Consumer Price Index (CPI) for June. Inflation driven by commodity prices justifies higher wages, but should not prompt the Bank of Canada to hike interest rates. Inflation and Wages Rising consumer prices nullified most of the wage gains that Canadian workers made during the last year. From June 2007 through June 2008, consumer prices […]
Read moreThe Wall Street Journal ran an op-ed this weekend entitled, “California Getaway: High taxes continue to drive businesses out of state,” about how the California State Automobile Association (CSAA) is relocating three call centres to other states. However, the CSAA, an affiliate of the American Automobile Association, is not really a “business”. I assume that, as a non-profit organization, it […]
Read moreThis morning, the Bank of Canada left interest rates unchanged. It should have cut interest rates because Canada’s slowing economy and overvalued currency are more serious problems than the spectre of inflation. Stimulus Needed Last week’s Labour Force Survey indicated that Canada lost 39,000 full-time jobs in June, pushing unemployment to its highest level in nearly two years. Statistics Canada’s […]
Read moreDuncan Cameron’s comment about the role of agriculture in climate change prompted me to take a closer look at greenhouse-gas emissions from sources other than burning fossil fuels. The final column of the following table is a sectoral breakdown of row 8 from yesterday’s table. All of these emissions are exempt from the Liberal Green Shift.  Sector  Fuel Emissions  Other […]
Read moreA couple of weeks ago, Jeffrey Simpson inaccurately accused the NDP of “ignoring the fact that most emissions come from individuals.” Andrew Coyne is similarly fond of suggesting that, while half of greenhouse-gas emissions are generated by large final emitters, the other half are generated by “consumers”. Both commentators have, to varying degrees, commended the Liberals for introducing a plan that is […]
Read moreMy assessment of today’s Labour Force Survey follows: Devastating Loss of Full-Time Jobs Canada lost 39,000 full-time jobs in June. While 34,000 of these positions were replaced with part-time jobs, 2,000 more Canadians entered the workforce, swelling the ranks of the unemployed by 7,000. One hopes that the Bank of Canada will respond to this labour-market downturn by cutting interest […]
Read moreThe Fraser Institute released its annual report on economic freedom yesterday. As always, the report attempts to establish a causal relationship between its measure of “economic freedom” and economic growth. The first major problem is that economic growth is clearly driven by other more important factors. With respect to Newfoundland and Labrador, the Fraser Institute acknowledges, “the province has benefited […]
Read moreAs reported yesterday and today, the Government of Quebec has lifted its ban on margarine coloured to look like butter and the province’s dairy farmers do not seem inclined to put up much of a fight. This story has provided excellent fodder for witty headline writers: “Can’t believe it’s not yellow?” – Globe and Mail “Quebec margarine goes mellow yellow” […]
Read moreI was a delegate to the United Steelworkers’ triennial Constitutional Convention in Las Vegas last week. Video of Obama’s speech and other highlights is available through the union’s revamped website. The 2008 convention will likely be remembered for three historic decisions. First, a new position was added to the union’s International Executive Board. (Semi-regular news stories about western Canada’s rising […]
Read moreThe Liberal Green Shift aims to bring federal taxes on all fossil fuels up to $40 per ton of carbon emissions, in line with the existing federal tax on gasoline. The Handbook provides a detailed costing of the $15.4 billion in accompanying tax cuts, tax credits and contingency funds, but no breakdown of the $15.3 billion in new carbon-tax revenues (page […]
Read moreRoutledge has just published a book comparing Australian, Canadian, and Mexican experiences of free trade with the United States. There are three chapters on each country examining long-run socioeconomic development prior to free trade, the specific free trade deals, and future policy alternatives. I wrote the Canadian chapter on the Canada-US Free Trade Agreement and NAFTA. A “pre-print” version follows. […]
Read moreTranscripts are now available of my appearances before the House and Senate Finance Committees regarding Bill C-50 (Budget Implementation). I critiqued the Budget’s general direction and its particular changes to (Un)Employment Insurance. The following remarks to the House committee duplicate what I said to the Senate committee, although MPs asked different questions than Senators. Mr. Erin Weir (Economist, United Steelworkers): […]
Read moreJohn McCain, the presumptive Republican nominee, appeared in Ottawa on Friday to praise NAFTA. The Canadian media has almost uniformly assumed that Democratic proposals to renegotiate this deal threaten Canada. In yesterday’s Ottawa Citizen, Ken Neumann, Canadian Director of the United Steelworkers, points out that most Canadians are rightly open to changing NAFTA.  Let’s renegotiate NAFTA The Ottawa Citizen […]
Read moreThe United Steelworkers union has published a new edition of our Canadian membership magazine. It includes the following column by yours truly and reports on the SPP counter-summit in New Orleans, our alliance with Environmental Defence, the Dofasco organizing drive, BC’s forest industry, and much more. The High Cost of Low Corporate Taxes The 2008 federal budget, entitled Responsible Leadership, […]
Read moreHaving travelled north of 60 as part of the Yukon Federation of Labour’s campaign against TILMA, I appreciate the territorial government’s decision to not join the deal. I will again be travelling around Canada’s newest TILMA-free zone and not contributing to this blog during the next couple of weeks.
Read moreThrough the following op-ed in Thursday’s Toronto Star, the United Steelworkers’ Canadian Director makes the case for a carbon tariff. It is now widely accepted that the struggle against global warming will involve placing a price on carbon emissions.  An equivalent tariff would prevent corporations from evading this price by relocating their carbon-intensive activities to countries that choose not to price […]
Read moreMurray Campbell’s excellent column in today’s Globe and Mail (excerpted below) accurately portrays the current state of play on the interprovincial trade front, including Steven Shrybman’s constitutional challenge of TILMA in Alberta and BC, Saskatchewan’s continued rejection of TILMA, the Quebec-Ontario negotiations and corporate Canada’s unrelenting push for new powers. One can only hope that the Globe editorial board reads […]
Read moreLast Tuesday’s episode of Politics featured Barb Byers on changes to (Un)Employment Insurance and Michael Ignatieff on the humanitarian crisis in Burma. I naturally agree with Byers, but get nervous whenever Ignatieff starts talking tough about the Responsibility to ProtectTM, the doctrine that he invoked to promote the invasion of Iraq. Ignatieff did not really answer Don Newman’s question about what […]
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