This module provides a concise summary of selected Canadian economic events, as well as international and financial market developments by calendar month. It is intended to provide contextual information only to support users of the economic data published by Statistics Canada. In identifying major events or developments, Statistics Canada is not suggesting that these have a material impact on the published economic data in a particular reference month.
All information presented here is obtained from publicly available news and information sources, and dbiloes not reflect any protected information provided to Statistics Canada by survey respondents.
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- Calgary-based TC Energy Corporation announced it had initiated a shut down of the Keystone Pipeline System on December 7th in response to a release of oil in Kansas. The company announced on December 14th the restart of the Keystone Pipeline section that extends from Hardisty, Alberta to Wood River/Patoka, Illinois. On December 21st, TC Energy said the affected segment of the Keystone Pipeline System remained isolated and will not be restarted until it is safe to do so and when the company has regulatory approval from the U.S. Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA). On December 23rd, TC Energy said the U.S. PHMSA had approved the Restart Plan for the Cushing segment.
- Calgary-based Suncor Energy Inc. announced it had shut down its Commerce City refinery in Colorado on December 24th due to equipment damage caused by extreme weather. Suncor said a restart of the facility with a return to full operations is expected to be completed by late in the first quarter of 2023.
- Calgary-based Cenovus Energy Inc. announced its 2023 budget, which includes plans to invest between $4.0 billion and $4.5 billon. Cenovus said the investments include about $2.8 billion of sustaining capital to maintain base production, and a range of $1.2 billion to $1.7 billion to be directed towards optimization and growth, including construction of the West White Rose project in Atlantic Canada.
- Calgary-based Imperial Oil Ltd. announced its capital spending is forecast at $1.7 billion in 2023 and includes a planned ramp-up for the Strathcona Renewable Diesel project, application of solvent technologies at Cold Lake, and ongoing investment on the in-pit tailings project at the Kearl oil sands facility.
- Calgary-based Enbridge Inc. announced it expects to deploy approximately $6 billion of capital in 2023, inclusive of maintenance capital.
- The Government of Canada announced it had approved the NOVA Gas Transmission Limited (NGTL) West Path Delivery 2023 (WP2023) pipeline project with 34 binding conditions related to environmental protection, the involvement of Indigenous people in monitoring, safety and integrity, and employment and training. The Government said the project will add approximately 40 km of new natural gas pipeline in southwestern Alberta to the existing 25,000-km NGTL system.
- Toronto-based Superior Plus Corp. and Certarus Ltd. of Calgary announced they had entered into a definitive arrangement agreement for Superior to acquire Certarus for a total acquisition value of $1.05 billion. The companies said the transaction is expected to close in the first quarter of 2023, subject to customary closing conditions.
- Vancouver-based Canfor Corporation announced a temporary reduction in production of approximately 150 million board feet in December and January through curtailments at all solid wood facilities in B.C. and Alberta. Canfor said curtailments would start on December 19th and would range from one to four weeks across its Canadian operations. Canfor also said it anticipates that the majority of its B.C. facilities will operate below full capacity in the New Year.
- Vancouver-based Western Forest Products Inc. announced plans to temporarily reduce its lumber production output for the remainder of 2022 by approximately 20 million board feet to manage inventory levels to current market conditions. The company said the reduction would be spread across its British Columbia manufacturing platform throughout December and that it expects production to resume at impacted sites in January 2023.
- The Government of Canada announced its decision to approve the Marathon Palladium Project, a proposed palladium mine located 10 km from Marathon, Ontario, with 269 legally-binding conditions to protect the environment, including mitigation measures and follow-up program requirements.
- Florida-based The Mosaic Company announced it had temporarily curtailed production at its Colonsay potash mine in Saskatchewan. Mosaic said underground development work will continue in anticipation of the restart of both mills in early 2023.
Transportation
- Calgary-based WestJet Airlines Ltd. announced it was taking first steps in growing overall capacity from Calgary International Airport by more than 25% in 2023, including new intercontinental routes between Calgary and Tokyo, Barcelona, Edinburgh, and increased frequencies between Calgary and Dublin, London, Paris, and Rome.
- Toronto-based Porter Airlines announced it was adding flights between Toronto Pearson International Airport and Vancouver International Airport, Calgary International Airport, Edmonton International Airport, and Halifax Stanfield International Airport, with the initial flight schedules starting in February 2023. Porter also said it was launching four new Canadian and U.S. routes from Ottawa International Airport and Boston, New York-Newark, Quebec City, and Thunder Bay starting in March 2023.
Financial
- TD Canada Trust, RBC Royal Bank of Canada (RBC), BMO Bank of Montreal, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (CIBC), Scotiabank, and Laurentian Bank of Canada announced they were increasing their prime lending rates from 5.95% to 6.45%, effective December 8th.
- Toronto-based Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) announced it had entered into an agreement to acquire HSBC Bank of Canada for an all-cash purchase price of $13.5 billion. RBC said the closing is expected by late 2023, subject to customary closing conditions including regulatory approvals.
Other news
- The Bank of Canada increased its target for the overnight rate by 50 basis points to 4.25%. The last change in the target for the overnight rate was a 50 basis points increase in October 2022.
- The Government of Canada announced on December 2nd that the G7 and Australia had reached consensus on a maximum price of USD $60 per barrel for seaborne Russian-origin crude oil in line with the unanimous decision by Member States of the European Union to endorse a price level for the price cap. The Government said that the price cap on Russian-origin crude oil would enter into force on December 5th, 2022, or very soon thereafter, and that the price cap on Russian-origin petroleum products will enter into force on February 5th, 2023.
- The Government of Canada announced on December 5th the opening of General Motors of Canada Company's (GM) CAMI Electric Vehicle (EV) assembly plant in Ingersoll, Ontario. The Government said the plant will build fully electric delivery vans, and that by 2025 the plant plans to manufacture 50,000 EVs per year.
- The Government of Canada announced on December 8th the new Federal Action Plan to Strengthen Internal Trade that outlines a strategy to accelerate efforts to remove barriers to trade and that the strategy contains five elements:
- The launch of the first pan-Canadian Internal Trade Information Hub to provide open and accessible data on internal trade in Canada;
- Stakeholder engagement to better understand what can be done to support internal trade around the country;
- Research to identify and address trade barriers;
- Enhanced funding for the Internal Trade Secretariat; and
- A review of the Canadian Free Trade Agreement (CFTA) to reduce federal exemptions, with a focus on government procurement.
- The Government of Canada announced on December 21st that it had determined that the significant adverse environmental effects of Switzerland-based Glencore International AG's proposed Sukunka Coal Mine Project, an open-pit metallurgical coal mine located near Tumbler Ridge, British Columbia, could not be mitigated and that the project therefore cannot proceed.
- The Government of Saskatchewan released its 2022-23 Mid Year Report on November 29th. The Government forecasts a $1.1 billion budget surplus in 2022-2023 and real GDP growth of 5.3% in 2022 and 1.9% in 2023.
- The Government of Quebec released its Update on Quebec's Economic and Financial Situation on December 8, which confirmed additional investments of more than $13 billion over five years to implement the Anti-Inflation Shield. The Government forecasts a $5.2 billion budget deficit for 2022-2023 and real GDP growth of 3.1% in 2022 and 0.7% in 2023.
- The Government of Manitoba released its 2022-23 Mid-Year Report - Fiscal and Economic Update on December 20th. The Government forecasts a $193 million budget deficit in 2022-2023 and real GDP growth of 3.7% in 2022 and 1.4% in 2023.
- The Government of Nova Scotia released its Forecast Update on December 20th. The Government forecasts a $142.6 million budget deficit for 2022-2023 and real GDP growth of 2.1% in 2022 and 1.6% in 2023.
- The Government of Prince Edward Island released its Economic and Fiscal Update on December 22nd. The Government forecasts a $94.8 million deficit for 2022-2023 and real GDP growth of 2.4% in 2022 and 1.2% in 2023.
- On November 29th, the Government of Alberta introduced the Alberta Sovereignty within a United Canada Act that would allow the Government to stand up to federal government overreach and interference in areas of provincial jurisdiction, including in the areas of private property, natural resources, agriculture, firearms, regulation of the economy and delivery of health, education, and other social programs.
- On December 7, the Government of Alberta introduced the Inflation Relief Statutes Amendment Act, 2022 that would enable the expansion of utility rebates, electricity price protection over the winter, personal income tax indexation retroactive to the 2022 tax year, full suspension of the provincial fuel tax, and delivery of upcoming targeted relief payments to families, seniors and vulnerable Albertans.
- Aurora, Ontario-based Magna International Inc. announced it had entered into an agreement to acquire the Veoneer Active Safety business from SSW Partners, LP of New York for USD $1.525 billion in cash. Magna said the transaction is expected to close near mid-year 2023, subject to certain regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions.
United States and other international news
- United States President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. declared that an emergency exists in the State of New York and ordered Federal assistance to supplement State and local response efforts due to the emergency conditions resulting from a severe winter storm beginning on December 23rd and continuing.
- The U.S. Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) raised the target range for the federal funds rate by 50 basis points to 4.25% to 4.50% and said it anticipates that ongoing increases in the target range will be appropriate. The last change in the target range was a 75 basis points increase in November 2022. The Committee also said it will continue reducing its holdings of Treasury securities and agency debt and agency mortgage-backed securities.
- The European Central Bank (ECB) raised the three key ECB interest rates by 50 basis points to 2.50% (main refinancing operations), 2.75% (marginal lending facility), and 2.00% (deposit facility). The last change in these rates was a 75 basis points increase in October 2022. The ECB also said it intends to continue reinvesting, in full, the principal payments from maturing securities purchased under the Asset Purchase Program (APP) until the end of February 2023 and that subsequently, the APP portfolio will decline at a measured and predictable pace, as the Eurosystem will not reinvest all of the principal payments from maturing securities.
- The Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) voted to increase the Bank Rate by 50 basis points to 3.5%. The last change in the Bank Rate was a 75 basis points increase in November 2022.
- The Bank of Japan (BoJ) announced it will apply a negative interest rate of -0.1% to the Policy-Rate Balances in current accounts held by financial institutions at the BoJ and that it will purchase a necessary amount of Japanese government bonds (JGBs) without setting an upper limit so that 10-year JGB yields will remain at around zero percent. The BoJ said that while significantly increasing the amount of JGB purchases, it will expand the range of 10-year JGB yield fluctuations from the target level: from between around plus and minus 0.25 percentage points to between around plus or minus 0.5 percentage points.
- The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) increased the target for the cash rate by 25 basis points to 3.1%. The last change in the target for the cash rate was a 25 basis points increase in November 2022.
- The Monetary Policy and Financial Stability Committee of Norway's Norges Bank raised the policy rate by 25 basis points to 2.75%. The last change in the policy rate was a 25 basis points increase in November 2022.
- OPEC and non-OPEC members announced on December 4th that participating countries decided to reaffirm the decision of the 33rd OPEC and non-OPEC Ministerial Meeting on October 5, 2022.
- New Jersey-based BlockFi Inc. and eight of its affiliates announced on November 28th they had commenced voluntary cases under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code to stabilize its business and provide the Company with the opportunity to consummate a comprehensive restructuring transaction. BlockFi said that as part of its restructuring efforts, it will focus on recovering all obligations owed to it by its counterparties, including FTX and associated corporate entities.
- New York-based Voyager Digital Ltd. announced that its operating company Voyager Digital LLC selected U.S. exchange BAM Trading Services Inc. of California, doing business as Binance.US, as the highest bid for its assets at approximately USD $1.022 billion after a review of strategic options with the core objective of maximizing the value returned to customers and other creditors as quickly as possible.
Financial market news
- West Texas Intermediate crude oil closed at USD $80.26 per barrel on December 30th, down from a closing value of USD $80.55 at the end of November. Western Canadian Select crude oil traded in the USD $49 to $59 per barrel range throughout December. The Canadian dollar closed at 73.83 cents U.S. on December 30th, down from 74.03 cents U.S. at the end of November. The S&P/TSX composite index closed at 19,384.92 on December 30th, down from 20,453.26 at the end of November.