The number of Canadians receiving regular Employment Insurance declines in April 2024
In April, 456,000 Canadians received regular Employment Insurance (EI) benefits, down 2.8% (-13,000) from March. Prior to the decline in April, the number of regular EI recipients had trended higher from February to December 2023 (+78,000; +19.8%) and held relatively steady in the early months of 2024. On a year-over-year basis, the number of regular EI beneficiaries was up by 60,000 (+15.1%) in April 2024.
Source: Employment Insurance, April 2024.
Canadian investment in foreign securities slows sharply in April 2024
Foreign investors acquired $41.2 billion of Canadian securities in April, the largest investment in two years. At the same time, Canadian investment in foreign securities slowed sharply to $2.5 million, from a record investment of $35.6 billion in March. As a result, international transactions in securities generated a net inflow of funds of $41.2 billion in the Canadian economy in April, nearly offsetting the net outflow of funds of the previous two months.
Source: Canada’s international transactions in securities, April 2024.
In April 2024, recent immigrants report having greater difficulty meeting their financial needs during the past 12 months
According to the most recent data from the Survey Series on People and their Communities, in April 2024, slightly over 3 in 10 Canadians (31%) found it difficult to meet their financial needs in terms of transportation, housing, food, clothing and other necessary expenses in the past 12 months. In April 2024, a larger proportion of recent immigrants (43%) reported finding it difficult or very difficult to meet their financial needs over the past 12 months, compared with more established immigrants (29%) and non-immigrants (29%). Similarly, non-permanent residents were more likely to report finding it difficult or very difficult to make ends meet (37%) than non-immigrants.
New house prices rise for the second consecutive month in May 2024
The national index rose by 0.2% on a month-over-month basis in May and prices grew in 10 of the 27 census metropolitan areas (CMAs) surveyed. This was the first month since June 2022 that prices increased in 10 or more CMAs. The largest month-over-month increases in May 2024 were reported in Trois-Rivières (+2.0%), Calgary (+1.3%) and Halifax (+1.1%). Builders in these CMAs attributed the price gains to construction costs and improving market conditions. Meanwhile, Trois-Rivières is one of the most affordable cities in Canada.
Source: New Housing Price Index, May 2024.
Prices for services provided by local messengers and local delivery services increase in April 2024
E-commerce sales totalled $45.1 billion in 2023, accounting for 5.7% of total retail sales from Canadian-based retailers. Based on that number, and the steady stream of packages landing on doorsteps, the number of deliveries necessary to get all the goods to Canadian households certainly isn’t slowing down. But, as our latest data from the Couriers and Messenger Services Price Index show, the price of shipping a good, from the final leg of the journey to the doorstep, is increasing more moderately. In April 2024, prices for services provided by local messengers and local delivery services increased 3.6% year over year. In April 2023, prices rose 4.6%, and in April 2022, prices rose 10.3%.
StatsCAN app
Did you know you can read StatsCAN Plus articles and more on the StatsCAN app? If you’re already using the app, let us know what you think by leaving a review in the App Store and Google Play.
Contact information
For more information, contact the Statistical Information Service (toll-free 1-800-263-1136; 514-283-8300; infostats@statcan.gc.ca) or Media Relations (statcan.mediahotline-ligneinfomedias.statcan@statcan.gc.ca).