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 does not reflect any protected information provided to Statistics Canada by survey respondents.
Selected COVID-19 responses
- On June 10th, the Government of Canada announced that mandatory randomized testing would be temporarily suspended at all airports between June 11th and June 30th, and that unvaccinated travellers will still be tested on-site. The Government said that as of July 1st, all testing, including for unvaccinated travellers, would be performed off-site.
- On June 14th, the Government of Canada announced that as of June 20th, vaccination will no longer be a requirement for domestic and outbound travel. The Government also said that travellers on federally regulated planes and trains continue to be required to wear a mask throughout their journey and that current vaccination requirements for travellers entering Canada will remain in effect.
- On June 29th, the Government announced it was extending current border measures for travellers entering Canada until at least September 30, 2022. The Government also said that the pause of mandatory random testing would continue at all airports until mid-July for travellers who qualify as fully vaccinated.
- The Government of Quebec announced on June 1st it was lifting the state of health emergency that had been declared on March 13, 2020.
Selected responses to Russia's attack on Ukraine
- On June 8th, the Government of Canada announced it was imposing new sanctions under the Special Economic Measures (Russia) Regulations and that the new measures impose a ban on the export of 28 services vital for the operation of the oil, gas and chemical industries, including technical, management, accounting and advertising services
Resources
- Calgary-based Imperial Oil Limited announced that it, together with ExxonMobil Canada, had entered into an agreement with Whitecap Resources Inc., also of Calgary, for the sale of XTO Energy Canada for a total cash consideration of $1.9 billion. Imperial said the assets include 567,000 net acres in the Montney shale, 72,000 net acres in the Duvernay shale, and additional acreage in other areas of Alberta. Imperial also said the sale is expected to close before the end of the third quarter of 2022, subject to regulatory approvals.
- Calgary-based Cenovus Energy Inc. announced it had reached an agreement to purchase the remaining 50% of the Sunrise oil sands project in northern Alberta from BP plc of the United Kingdom for total consideration of $600 million in cash, a variable payment with a maximum cumulative value of $600 million expiring after two years, and Cenovus’s 35% position in the undeveloped Bay du Nord project offshore Newfoundland and Labrador. Cenovus said the transaction is anticipated to close in the third quarter of 2022, subject to closing conditions and normal purchase price adjustments.
- Saskatoon-based Nutrien Ltd announced it plans to increase its annual potash production capability to 18 million tonnes by 2025 in response to the uncertainty of supply from Eastern Europe. Nutrien said this represents an increase of more than 5 million tonnes, or 40%, compared to its production in 2020. Nutrien also said it will hire and train approximately 350 people and invest in underground mining equipment, mine development, storage, and loadout capacity to boost production.
Telecommunications
- Vancouver-based TELUS Corporation announced it had entered into a definitive agreement with LifeWorks, Inc. of Toronto pursuant to which TELUS will acquire all of the issued and outstanding common shares of LifeWorks for approximately $2.9 billion, including debt. TELUS said the transaction is expected to occur on or about the fourth quarter of 2022, subject to required court, LifeWorks shareholder, stock exchange, and regulatory approvals.
- Toronto-based Rogers Communications Inc., Shaw Communications Inc. of Calgary, and Quebecor Inc. of Montreal announced an agreement for the sale of Freedom Mobile Inc. of Toronto to Quebecor for an enterprise value of $2.85 billion. The companies said the transaction is expected to close substantially concurrently with closing of the Rogers-Shaw transaction, subject to clearance under the Competition Act and the approval of Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED).
Other news
- The Bank of Canada increased its target for the overnight rate by 50 basis points to 1.50%. The last change in the target for the overnight rate was a 50 basis points increase in April 2022.
- On June 1st, TD Canada Trust, RBC Royal Bank, Scotiabank, BMO Bank of Montreal, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (CIBC), and Laurentian Bank of Canada announced they were increasing their Canadian prime lending rate by 50 basis points from 3.20% to 3.70%, effective June 2, 2022.
- British Columbia’s minimum wage increased from $15.20 to $15.65 per hour on June 1st.
- The Government of Ontario announced on June 30th that it was cutting the gas tax by 5.7 cents per litre and the fuel tax by 5.3 cents per litre for six months, beginning July 1st.
- Montreal-based Canadian National Railway Company (CN) announced on June 20th that normal rail operations continue as it had implemented its operation contingency plan as the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) strikes.
- Luxembourg-based JAB Holding Company and Fairfax Financial Holdings Limited of Toronto announced a strategic partnership in which JAB’s pet insurance business has agreed to acquire all of Fairfax’s interests in the Crum & Forester Pet Insurance Group of Ohio and Pethealth Inc. of Oakville for USD $1.4 billion. The companies said the transaction is expected to close in the second half of 2022, subject to customary closing conditions, including various regulatory approvals.
United States and other international news
- The U.S. Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) raised the target range for the federal funds rate by 75 bps to 1.50% to 1.75% and said it anticipates that ongoing increases in the target range will be appropriate. The last change in the target range was a 50 basis points increase in May 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) announced that (i) the interest rates on the main refinancing operations, the marginal lending facility, and the deposit facility will remain unchanged at 0.00%, 0.25% and -0.50%, respectively; (ii) it would end net asset purchases under its asset purchase programme (APP) as of July 1, 2022 and continue reinvesting, in full, the principle payments from maturing securities purchased under the APP for an extended period of time; and (iii) it intends to reinvest the principal payments from maturing securities purchased under the Pandemic Emergency Purchase Program (PEPP) until at least the end of 2024.
- The Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) voted to increase the Bank Rate by 25 basis points to 1.25%. The last change in the Bank Rate was a 25 basis points increase in May 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 Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) increased the target for the cash rate by 50 basis points to 0.85%. The last change in the target for the cash rate was a 25 basis points increase in May 2022.
- The Monetary Policy and Financial Stability Committee of Norway's Norges Bank decided to raise the policy rate by 50 basis points to 1.25%. The last change in the policy rate was a 25 basis points increase in March 2022.
- The Executive Board of Sweden's Riksbank raised the repo rate by 50 basis points to 0.75%. The last change in the repo rate was a 25 basis points increase in April 2022.
- OPEC and non-OPEC members announced on June 2nd they had decided to adjust upward the monthly overall production by 0.648 mb/d for the month of July 2022. In a subsequent release on June 30th, OPEC and non-OPEC members announced they had agreed to adjust upward the monthly overall production by 0.648 mb/d for the month of August.
- Texas-based Freeport LNG Development, L.P. announced that on June 8th a fire occurred at the Freeport LNG liquefaction plant on Quintana Island, Texas. Freeport said that resumption of partial operations is targeted to be achieved in approximately 90 days and that completion of all necessary repairs and a return to full plant operations is not expected until late 2022.
- New York-based Revlon, Inc. announced that it and certain of its subsidiaries had filed voluntary petitions for reorganization under Chapter 11 in U.S. Bankruptcy Court and that none of its international operating subsidiaries are included in the proceedings, except Canada and the U.K. Revlon said that upon receipt of court approval, the Company expects to receive $575 million in debtor-in-possession financing and that its management team will continue to run the business following the filing.
Financial market news
- West Texas Intermediate crude oil closed at USD $105.76 per barrel on June 30th, down from a closing value of USD $114.67 at the end of May. Western Canadian Select crude oil traded in the USD $90 to $109 per barrel range throughout June. The Canadian dollar closed at 77.60 cents U.S. on June 30th, down from 79.06 cents U.S. at the end of May. The S&P/TSX composite index closed at 18,861.36 on June 30th, down from 20,729.34 at the end of May.