The Weekly Review, February 3 to 7, 2025

Canada’s merchandise exports and imports increased in December 2024 

In December, Canada’s merchandise exports increased 4.9% and imports were up 2.3%. As a result, Canada’s merchandise trade balance with the world went from a deficit of $986 million in November to a surplus of $708 million in December. This was the first merchandise trade surplus since February 2024.

Source: Canadian international merchandise trade, December 2024

Residential building construction costs increased in the fourth quarter of 2024

Residential building construction costs increased 0.8% in the fourth quarter, following a 0.9% increase in the previous quarter. Non-residential building construction costs rose 0.8% in the fourth quarter, following a 0.6% increase in the previous quarter. Year over year, construction costs for residential buildings in the 15-census metropolitan area composite rose 3.7% in the fourth quarter, while non-residential building construction costs increased 3.8%.

Source: Building construction price indexes, fourth quarter 2024

International student graduates are less likely than their Canadian counterparts to be employed three years after graduation

Most (88.6%) 2020 international student graduates who remained in Canada and did not continue their studies were employed three years after graduation. However, their employment rate was lower than that of Canadian graduates (91.0%), suggesting a more challenging school-to-work transition for international students.

Source: Study: International student graduates’ labour market early outcomes—Results from the National Graduates Survey

Employment increases for the third consecutive month in January 2025 

Employment increased by 76,000 (+0.4%) in January and the employment rate rose 0.1 percentage points to 61.1%. The unemployment rate declined 0.1 percentage points to 6.6%. In January, employment increased for youth aged 15 to 24 (+31,000; +1.1%), as well as for women (+36,000; +0.5%) and men (+28,000; +0.4%) in the core working age group of 25 to 54 years old. Employment gains in January were led by manufacturing (+33,000; +1.8%) and professional, scientific and technical services (+22,000; +1.1%).

Source: Labour Force Survey, January 2025

Availability and accessibility of cycling infrastructure in Canada

To supplement existing data on commuting patterns, Statistics Canada has just released the Canadian Cycling Network Database, a dataset that consolidates nationwide cycling infrastructure information from 75 municipal open data sources from 2018 to 2024. Using the Canadian Bikeway Comfort and Safety classification system, this dataset reveals the availability and accessibility of cycling infrastructure, making it easier to understand what biking to work may look like in different municipalities. 

Source: New data take a closer look at cycling infrastructure in Canada