Canadian Economic News, January 2024 Edition

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.

Resources

  • Calgary-based Trans Mountain Corp. announced on January 12th that it had received a ruling from the Canada Energy Regulator that approved its variance request with conditions. Trans Mountain said it will now proceed in compliance with the order approving the variance and that the Trans Mountain Expansion Project is now more than 98% complete.
  • Calgary-based Parkland Corporation announced on January 24th it had temporarily shut down processing operations at the Burnaby Refinery and that it expects the refinery will return to normal operations in approximately four weeks. Parkland said that to ensure reliability of supply, it had increased imports of refined products into its on-site shipping terminal.
  • Vancouver-based West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd. announced it would close its sawmill in Maxville, Florida and indefinitely curtail operations at its sawmill in Huttig, Arkansas by the end of the month. The company said that, in aggregate, this would reduce its lumber capacity by approximately 270 million board feet. Later, West Fraser announced it will permanently close its sawmill in Fraser Lake, British Columbia following an orderly wind-down. The company said the closure will impact approximately 175 employees and reduce West Fraser's Canadian lumber capacity by approximately 160 million board feet.
  • The Government of Ontario announced it is supporting Ontario Power Generation's (OPG) plan to proceed with the next steps toward refurbishing Pickering Nuclear Generating Station's "B" units and that OPG will now proceed with the Project Initiation Phase of refurbishment. The Government said it is supporting OPG's $2 billion budget for this phase which includes engineering and design work as well as securing long-lead components.

Manufacturing

  • Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario-based Algoma Steel Group Inc. announced that an incident had occurred on January 20th at its coke-making plant and that coke production was interrupted. The company later said that it expected to resume production within two weeks and that it expected some impact on shipments.
  • Vancouver-based Rogers Sugar Inc. announced it had reached a memorandum of agreement with the union representing the employees of the company's Vancouver sugar refinery, and that the tentative agreement is subject to a vote. Rogers Sugar said workers at the refinery have been on strike since September 28, 2023.

Other news

  • The Bank of Canada held its target for the overnight rate at 5.0%. The last change in the target for the overnight rate was a 25 basis points increase in July 2023. The bank said it is also continuing its policy of quantitative tightening.
  • The Government of Canada announced it will set an intake cap on international student permit applications to stabilize new growth for a period of two years. The Government said that for 2024, the cap is expected to result in approximately 360,000 approved study permits, a decrease of 35% from 2023. The Government also said that those pursuing master's and doctoral degrees, and elementary and secondary education are not included in the cap.
  • Nunavut's minimum wage increased from $16.00 to $19.00 per hour on January 1st.
  • New York-based Blackstone Inc. and Tricon Residential Inc. of Toronto announced they had entered into an arrangement agreement under which Blackstone Real Estate Partners X together with Blackstone Real Estate Income Trust, Inc. would acquire all outstanding common shares of Tricon for USD $3.5 billion. The companies said completion of the transaction is expected in the second quarter of 2024, subject to customary closing conditions, including shareholder approval and regulatory approval under the Canadian Competition Act and Investment Canada Act.
  • Toronto-based Restaurant Brands International Inc. (RBI) and Carrols Restaurant Group, Inc. of New York announced they had reached an agreement for RBI to acquire all of Carrols issued and outstanding shares for a total enterprise value of approximately USD $1.0 billion. The companies said the transaction is expected to be completed in the second quarter of 2024, subject to expiration or termination of the applicable waiting period under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976, as well as other customary closing conditions including shareholder approval.
  • Surrey, British Columbia-based Black Press Ltd. announced it had obtained an Initial Order under the Companies' Creditors Arrangement Act (CCAA) that provides for a stay of proceedings in favour of the company and the approval of debtor-in-possession financing. The company said it intends to seek Court approval to launch a sale and investment solicitation process for its business and assets. Black Press also said it intends to seek recognition of the CCAA Proceedings in the United States pursuant to Chapter 15 of Title 11 of the United States Code in United States Bankruptcy Court.
  • On January 22nd, the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) announced that members would be withdrawing all services from Vancouver's Coast Mountain Bus Company for 48 hours.

United States and other international news

  • United States President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. announced on January 26th a temporary pause on pending decisions on exports of Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) to non-FTA countries until the Department of Energy can update the underlying analyses for authorizations.
  • The U.S. Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) maintained the target range for the federal funds rate at 5.25% to 5.50%. The last change in the target range was a 25 basis points increase in July 2023. 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) kept its three key interest rates unchanged at 4.50% (main refinancing operations), 4.75% (marginal lending facility), and 4.00% (deposit facility). The last change in these rates was a 25 basis points increase in September 2023.
  • The Monetary Policy and Financial Stability Committee of Norway's Norges Bank left the policy rate unchanged at 4.5%. The last change in the policy rate was a 25 basis points increase in December 2023.
  • 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.

Financial market news

  • West Texas Intermediate crude oil closed at USD $75.85 per barrel on January 31st, up from a closing value of USD $71.65 at the end of December. Western Canadian Select crude oil traded in the USD $51 to $60 per barrel range throughout January. The Canadian dollar closed at 74.64 cents U.S. on January 31st, down from 75.61 cents U.S. at the end of December. The S&P/TSX composite index closed at 21,021.88 on January 31st, up from 20,958.44 at the end of December.
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