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.
COVID-19 timeline
- On June 7th, the Government of Saskatchewan announced it had extended the state of emergency effective June 9th. On June 22nd, the state of emergency was extended effective June 23rd.
- On June 8th, the Government of the Northwest Territories announced it had extended the territory-wide Public Health Emergency until June 22nd. On June 22nd, the Public Health Emergency was extended until July 6th.
- On June 8th, the Government of British Columbia announced it had formally extended the provincial state of emergency until June 22nd. On June 22nd, the state of emergency was extended until July 6th.
- On June 10th, the Government of Nunavut announced it had extended the territory's public health emergency until June 24th. On June 24th, the public health emergency was extended until July 8th.
- On June 11th, the Government of Nova Scotia announced it was renewing the state of emergency, effective June 13th, until June 27th. On June 25th, the state of emergency was extended, effective June 27th, until July 11th.
- On June 25th, the Government of Manitoba announced it was extending the state of emergency, effective June 27th, for a period of 30 days.
Selected COVID-19 responses
- The Government of Nova Scotia announced on May 31st that in-person classes at public and private schools in Halifax Regional Municipality (HRM) and Sydney will resume on June 3rd and that classes would resume for students outside these regions on June 2nd.
On June 15th, the Government announced it would start the second phase of its reopening plan on June 16th, and that:- Informal gatherings can have 10 people indoors and 25 outdoors;
- Restaurants and licensed establishments can operate indoors and outdoors at their maximum capacity, service must stop by 11:00 p.m. and establishments must close by midnight;
- All retail stores can operate at 50% capacity;
- Personal services such as hair salons, barber shops and spas can operate by appointment only;
- Fitness and recreation facilities such as gyms, yoga studios, pools and arenas can operate at 50% capacity;
- Recreation and leisure businesses and organizations, such as dance classes, music lessons, escape rooms and indoor play spaces, can operate at 25% capacity;
- Organized sports practices can involve up to 10 people indoors and 25 people outdoors;
- Museums, libraries, and the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia can open at 25% capacity.
- The Government also said it would reopen the border to Atlantic Canadians on June 23rd.
- On June 22nd, the Government announced that borders were reopening, effective June 23rd, to residents of the three other Atlantic provinces and that Nova Scotia would open to travellers from outside Atlantic Canada on June 30th.
- On June 24th, the Government said it was opening the border to people travelling from New Brunswick without restrictions starting June 30th.
- On June 24th, the Government announced it would start the third phase of its reopening plan and that effective June 30th:
- Informal gatherings can include a household plus 10 people indoors, or 25 people total outdoors without physical distance;
- Restaurants and licensed establishments continue to operate with existing mask and distancing rules; establishments must stop service by midnight and close by 1:00 a.m.;
- All retail stores can operate at 75%;
- Personal services such as hair salons, barber shops and spas can offer all services by appointment or drop-in;
- Meetings and training hosted by a recognized business or organization can have a maximum of 100 people indoors or 150 people outdoors;
- Fitness and recreation facilities such as gyms, yoga studios, pools and arenas can operate at 75% capacity;
- Organized sports practices, games, league play and recreation programs can involve up to 25 people indoors and 50 people outdoors without physical distancing; there can be no tournaments; and
- Day camps can operate with 20 campers per group plus staff and volunteers.
- The Government of Nunavut announced on May 31st that restrictions would be eased in Iqaluit, and that effective June 3rd:
- Indoor home gatherings can have 5 people in addition to household members and outdoor gatherings of up to 25 people are allowed;
- Indoor gatherings for support groups and group counselling can re-open for up to 20 people and indoor events can take place for up to 25% of the facility's capacity;
- Daycares may open and schools may open at Stage 3 of the 2020-2021 Opening Plan for Nunavut Schools;
- Government offices and private businesses may open;
- Arenas may allow 25% of the facility's capacity and there can be no more than 25 spectators and no team sports;
- Libraries and galleries may open for individual and family visits;
- Facilities holding fitness sessions may open for solo workouts; and
- All public playgrounds, municipal parks, and territorial parks may open, but their buildings remain closed.
- The Government said travel in and out of Iqaluit continues to be restricted and restaurants and licensed establishments remain restricted to takeout only.
- The Government announced on June 7th that public health restrictions would be eased in Kinngait, and that effective June 9th:
- Indoor home gatherings can have 15 people in addition to household members and outdoor gatherings of up to 100 people are allowed;
- Daycares may open and schools may open at Stage 2 of the 2020-2021 Opening Plan for Nunavut Schools;
- Government offices and private businesses may open;
- Indoor gatherings for support groups and group counselling can re-open for up to 20 people and indoor public gatherings including places of worship and arenas can take place for up to 50% of the facility's capacity; and
- Food service and licensed establishments may open for regular business at 50% capacity.
- The Government also announced on June 7th that effective June 11th in Iqaluit, personal services such as hairdressers and beauty salons may open. The Government said that travel in and out of the city continues to be restricted.
- The Government announced on June 10th that it was reopening Nunavut's side of the Common Travel Area with the Northwest Territories and that all travellers from the Northwest Territories can now travel without completing 14 days of isolation.
- The Government announced on June 23rd the effective June 25th, public health measures would be eased in Rankin Inlet and all Qikiqtani communities except Iqaluit and that:
- Indoor gatherings in community halls, conference spaces, government and Inuit organization facilities will increase to 75% capacity;
- Group session at fitness centres and pools can increase to 25 people;
- Theatres may allow 75% capacity; and
- Schools move to Stage 1 of the Opening Plan for Nunavut Schools.
- The Government announced on June 29th it would ease public health measures as of July 2nd and that:
- Travel restrictions in and out of Iqaluit are lifted;
- Restaurants and licensed facilities may open at 25%;
- The theatre may open at 25% capacity per screening room;
- Indoor gatherings increase to 10 people plus household members;
- Public indoor gatherings increase to 50%;
- Outdoor gatherings increase to 50 people.
- Gym capacity for solo workouts increases to 50% capacity;
- Libraries, museums, and galleries capacity increases to 50%; and
- Arena capacity may increase to 50%.
- The Government of Alberta announced on June 1st that Stage 1 measures of the Open for Summer Plan were effective immediately and that:
- Retail can increase to 15% of fire code occupancy;
- Outdoor social gatherings can increase to up to 10 people, while indoor social gatherings are still not permitted;
- Outdoor patio dining can resume;
- Outdoor physical, performance, and recreational activities are permitted with up to 10 people,
- Personal and wellness services can reopen, by appointment only;
- Wedding ceremonies may have up to 10 people, while receptions remain prohibited; and
- Funeral ceremonies may have up to 20 people, while receptions remain prohibited.
- The Government announced on June 9th that beginning June 10th, Stage 2 would take effect and that:
- Outdoor social gatherings increase to 20 people;
- Restaurants may seat tables with up to six people, indoors or outdoors;
- Retail capacity increases to one-third of fire code occupancy;
- Gyms and other indoor fitness facilities open for solo and drop-in activities may resume;
- Indoor settings, including arenas, cinemas, museums, art galleries, and libraries may open with up to one-third of fire code occupancy;
- Youth activities, such as day camps, overnight camps, and play centres, may resume;
- Personal and wellness services can resume walk-in services;
- Post-secondary institutions can resume in-person learning;
- The work-from-home order is lifted but still recommended;
- Outdoor fixed seating facilities (e.g., grandstands) can open with one-third seated capacity; and
- Public outdoor gatherings increase to 150 people.
- The Government announced on June 18th that the province will move to Stage 3 on July 1st and fully reopen.
- The Government of Newfoundland and Labrador released its reopening plan on June 2nd, a phased approach to lifting long-term public health measures based on the success of immunizations, the controlled spread of COVID-19, including variants of concern, the ability to test, trace, and isolate all cases, and health system readiness to handle any surge in COVID-19 cases.
- The Government announced on June 15th it would amend the Special Measures Order to permit residents of Atlantic Canada to enter the province effective June 23rd.
- The Government of Ontario announced on June 1st that the province's Stay-at-Home order would expire on June 2nd and that all other existing measures would remain in place provincewide, including restrictions on gatherings, businesses, services, and activities.
- On June 2nd, the Government announced it had decided to continue with remote learning for all elementary and secondary students across the province for the remainder of this school year.
- On June 7th, the Government announced it would move the province into Step One of its Roadmap to Reopen on June 11th, which includes but is not limited to:
- Outdoor social gatherings and organized public events with up to 10 people;
- Indoor religious services, rites, or ceremonies, including wedding services and funeral services permitted at up to 15% capacity;
- Non-essential retail permitted at 15% capacity, with no restrictions on the goods that can be sold;
- Essential and other select retail permitted at 25% capacity, with no restrictions on the goods that can be sold;
- Outdoor dining with up to four people per table;
- Outdoor fitness classes, outdoor groups in personal training, and outdoor individual/team sport training to be permitted with up to 10 people;
- Day camps for children permitted to operate;
- Overnight camping at campgrounds and campsites, including Ontario Parks, and short-term rentals;
- Concert venues, theatres, and cinemas may open outdoors with no more than 10 performers;
- Outdoor horse racing tracks and motor speedways permitted to operate without spectators; and
- Outdoor attractions such as zoos, landmarks, historic sites, botanical gardens with capacity restrictions.
- The Government said the province will remain in Step One for at least 21 days.
- On June 24th, the Government announced it was moving into Step Two of its Roadmap to Reopen on June 30th and that the following would be permitted:
- Outdoor social gatherings and organized public events with up to 25 people;
- Indoor social gatherings and organized public events with up to 5 people;
- Essential and other select retail permitted at 50% capacity;
- Non-essential retail permitted at 25% capacity;
- Personal care services where face coverings can be worn at all times, and at 25% capacity;
- Outdoor dining with up to 6 people per table; and
- Outdoor concert venues, theatres and cinemas, with spectators permitted at 25% capacity.
- The Government of Quebec announced on June 1st that effective June 7th, Montreal, Laval, MRC du Granit (Estrie), the MRCs of Beauce-Sartigan, L'Islet, Montmagny and Robert-Cliche (Chaudière-Appalaches); and the RCMs of Kamouraska , Rivière-du-Loup, Témiscouata and Les Basques (Bas-Saint-Laurent) would be moved from the Maximum alert level (red) to the alert (orange) level.
- On June 4th, the Government announced that the Gaspésie - Îles-de-la-Madeleine region, which is currently at the yellow level, would move to the vigilance alert level (green) as of June 7th.
- On June 8th, the Government announced that the Capitale-Nationale, Chaudière-Appalaches, Estrie, Montreal, Outaouais, Laval, Lanaudière, Laurentians, Montérégie, regions and the MRCs of Kamouraska, Rivière-du-Loup, Témiscouata, and Les Basques (Bas-Saint-Laurent) would move to the pre-alert level (yellow) on June 14th.
- The Government announced on June 14th that bars located in green and yellow level regions can operate at 50% capacity, serve alcohol until midnight, and close at 2:00 am. The Government also announced it was reopening its border with Ontario effective June 16th.
- The Government announced on June 22nd that all regions of Quebec would move to the green zone on June 28th.
- The Government of the Northwest Territories announced on June 2nd it would now offer exemptions from self-isolation requirements for travellers from the Yukon.
- On June 9th, the Government released Emerging Wisely 2021, its step-by-step plan for easing and ending pandemic restrictions based on vaccination levels in the Northwest Territories and across Canada as well as COVID-19 case counts. The Government said that effective immediately it was safe to ease restrictions on outdoor gatherings.
- On June 21st, the Government announced that all residents, non-resident essential service workers, and other travellers with exemptions who are fully vaccinated will no longer need to self-isolate upon entry to the Territories.
- The Government of Manitoba announced on June 3rd that all kindergarten to Grade 12 schools in Winnipeg and Brandon, as well as the Garden Valley and Red River Valley school divisions, would remain in remote learning until the end of the school year.
- On June 9th, the Government announced a new set of health orders effective June 12th that include provisions for outdoor gatherings with up to five people in public spaces on private property.
- On June 10th, the Government announced its safe summer reopening path for more openings and fewer restrictions as vaccination levels rise over the course of the summer.
- On June 23rd, the Government announced it would move ahead with the first milestone of its reopening plan one week early and that effective June 26th:
- Outdoor gathering sizes on private property to double to 10 persons;
- Public outdoor gathering sizes to increase to 25 persons;
- Personal service businesses (hair and nail salons, estheticians, barbers, etc.) could reopen at 50% capacity, on an appointment basis only;
- Restaurants and bars could reopen at 25% capacity for indoors and 50% for outdoor dining;
- Gyms and fitness facilities could reopen for individual and group fitness classes at 25% capacity.
- The Government of British Columbia announced on June 14th that effective June 15th, the province would transition into Step 2 of BC's Restart plan, which includes:
- Lifting the non-essential travel ban;
- Maximum of 50 people for outdoor personal gatherings;
- Maximum of 50 people for indoor seated organized gatherings (e.g., movie theatres, live theatre, banquet halls);
- Maximum of 50 spectators for outdoor sports;
- Liquor service at restaurants, bars, and pubs extended until midnight; and
- Indoor sports games (no spectators) and high-intensity fitness allowed.
- On June 29th, the Government announced it was moving to Step 3 of its four-step restart plan effective July 1st, which included:
- A return to normal for indoor and outdoor personal gatherings;
- Maximum capacity for indoor organized gatherings of 50 people or up to 50% of a venue's total capacity, whichever is greater;
- Maximum capacity for outdoor organized gatherings of 5,000 people or up to 50% of a venue's total capacity, whichever is greater;
- A return to normal for fairs, festivals and trade shows, with communicable disease plans;
- A return to Canada-wide recreational travel;
- A reopening of casinos, with reduced capacity;
- A reopening of nightclubs, with up to 10 people seated at tables;
- A return to normal hours for liquor service at restaurants, bars, and pubs; and
- A return to normal for sports and exercise facilities.
- The Government of New Brunswick announced on June 15th that it would enter the first phase on the path toward the Green level of the COVID-19 recovery plan, effective June 16th, and that:
- No isolation or testing will be required for those travelling to New Brunswick from select regions: Newfoundland and Labrador, Prince Edward Island, the Avignon and Témiscouata regions of Quebec, and Cumberland County in Nova Scotia;
- Indoor informal gatherings will be limited to 20 or fewer, while indoor formal gatherings can be up to 50% of the venue's capacity;
- Outdoor informal gatherings will be permitted and outdoor formal gatherings will be permitted at maximum capacity;
- Organized sporting activities will be permitted but restricted to teams based in the select regions.
- On June 16th, the Government announced the province would enter Phase 2, effective June 17th and two weeks ahead of the original target date, and that:
- No isolation or testing will be required for those travelling to New Brunswick from the Atlantic provinces, including Nova Scotia;
- No isolation or testing will be required for Canadian residents with at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine travelling to New Brunswick;
- Unvaccinated Canadian residents travelling to New Brunswick from outside the Atlantic provinces, or Avignon or Témiscouata in Quebec, will be permitted to enter the province but will be required to isolate and take a COVID-19 test between days five and seven before they can discontinue isolation;
- Restaurants and businesses may operate at regular capacity;
- Organized sporting activity will be permitted, however players and teams based outside of Atlantic Canada will be subject to travel requirements.
- The Government of Prince Edward Island announced on June 15th it was advancing its reopening plan and that effective June 17th, vaccinated Island residents and people from within Atlantic Canada can apply for a P.E.I. Pass that verifies you are fully or partially vaccinated and that you are not required to self-isolate in P.E.I. The Government also said that effective June 17th, the self-isolation period will be reduced from 14 days to 8 days for those travelling to P.E.I. from within Canada, and that effective July 28th, Canadians can enter P.E.I. if they have been approved for a P.E.I. Pass.
- The Government of Canada announced on June 18th that it was extending restrictions on non-essential international travel including non-essential travel with the United States until July 21st.
- On June 21st, the Government announced that beginning July 5th, fully vaccinated travellers—those who have received the full series of a vaccine accepted by the Government of Canada—will not be subject to the federal requirement to quarantine or to take a COVID-19 test on day-8. In addition, the Government said that fully vaccinated travellers arriving by air will not be required to stay at a government-authorized hotel.
- The Government of Saskatchewan announced on June 18th it would enter Step Two of re-opening on June 20th and that:
- Table capacity limits were being removed in all restaurants and licensed establishments;
- Retail capacity limits would be removed;
- Indoor sport competitions would be able to resume;
- Capacity limits for banquet and conference facilities would increase to 150 people;
- The number of movie goers could increase to 150 from the current limit of 30.
- On June 19th, the Government said that Step Three will begin on July 11th and that the majority of public health measures will be lifted.
Resources
- Pembina Pipeline Corporation and Inter Pipeline Ltd., both of Calgary, announced they had entered into an arrangement agreement for Pembina to acquire all of the issued and outstanding shares of Inter Pipeline in a share-for-share transaction valued at approximately $15.2 billion, including Inter Pipeline's debt. The companies said the transaction is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2021, subject to shareholder and regulatory approvals, as well as the approval of the Court of Queen's Bench of Alberta.
- Calgary-based TC Energy Corporation announced that after a comprehensive review of its options, and in consultation with its partner, the Government of Alberta, it had terminated the Keystone XL Pipeline Project.
- Pembina Pipeline Corporation and TC Energy Corporation announced plans to jointly develop a carbon transportation and sequestration system—the Alberta Carbon Grid— that will be capable of transporting more than 20 million tonnes of CO2 annually from the province's largest sources of industrial emissions to a sequestration location north-east of Redwater, Alberta.
- Calgary-based Enbridge Inc. announced that a subsidiary of Enbridge had entered into a definitive agreement to sell its 38.9% non-operating minority ownership interest in Noverco Inc. of Montreal to Montreal-based Trencap L.P. for $1.14 billion in cash, net of Noverco non-recourse debt. Enbridge said the transaction is expected to occur by early 2022, subject to regulatory approvals and customary closing conditions.
Enbridge later announced that the Minnesota Court of Appeals acknowledged the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission's review of the Line 3 Replacement Project and confirmed that the commissioners approved the project's environmental impact statement, certificate of need, and route permit. Enbridge said the project is on track to be in service in the fourth quarter of 2021. - Calgary-based Tourmaline Oil Corp. announced it had entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Black Swan Energy Ltd., also of Calgary, for a total consideration of approximately $1.1 billion. Tourmaline said the transaction is expected to close in July 2021, subject to regulatory approvals.
- Brazil-based Vale S.A. announced on June 1st that employees representing production and maintenance employees in Sudbury, Ontario, voted to reject the company's new five-year collective bargaining agreement and that this would result in a labour disruption at the Sudbury operations. On June 14th, Vale said workers voted to reject its second offer and that operations remain idle.
Transportation
- Montreal-based Air Transat announced it will offer flights to the Caribbean, Mexico, Central and South America, the United States, and Europe starting November 1st. The company said direct flights will be offered from Montreal, Quebec City, Toronto, Ottawa, Hamilton, London, Halifax, and Moncton.
Other news
- The Bank of Canada announced it held its target for the overnight rate at the effective lower bound of 0.25%. The target for the overnight rate was reduced by 150 basis points during March 2020. The Bank also said that its quantitative easing (QE) program would continue at a target pace of $3 billion per week.
- The Government of Canada announced that the Agreement to Prevent Unregulated High Seas Fisheries in the Central Arctic Ocean had come into effect and that no commercial fishing can take place in the central Arctic Ocean. The Government said the agreement was signed by Canada, Norway, Russia, the United States, China, Iceland, Japan, the Republic of Korea, the European Union, and Denmark in 2018.
- The Government of Newfoundland and Labrador released Budget 2021 on May 31st, which included investments in infrastructure, tourism and hospitality, small business and community organization, and economic development initiatives. The Government projects an $826 million deficit in 2021-2022 and real GDP growth of 5.6% in 2021.
- British Columbia's minimum wage increased from $14.60 per hour to $15.20 per hour on June 1st.
United States and other international news
- The U.S. Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) maintained the target range for the federal funds rate at 0.00% to 0.25%. The last change in the target range was a 100 basis points decrease announced in March 2020. The FOMC also said the Federal Reserve would continue to increase its holdings of Treasury securities by at least $80 billion per month and of agency mortgage-backed securities by at least $40 billion per month until substantial further progress has been made toward the Committee's maximum employment and price stability goals.
- The European Central Bank (ECB) announced (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) net asset purchases under the pandemic emergency purchase programme (PEPP) will continue with a total envelope of €1,850 billion until at least the end of March 2022; and (iii) net purchases under the asset purchase programme (APP) will continue at a monthly pace of €20 billion. The ECB Governing Council said it expects purchases under the PEPP over the coming quarter to continue to be conducted at a significantly higher pace than during the first months of this year.
- The Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) voted to maintain the Bank Rate at 0.1%. The MPC also voted to maintain the stock of sterling non-financial investment-grade corporate bond purchases at £20 billion, and to continue with the existing programme of UK government bond purchases, maintaining the target for the stock of these government bonds at £875 billion.
- The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) maintained the targets for the cash rate and the yield on 3-year Australian Government bonds at 0.10%. The last change in the target for the cash rate was a 15 basis points reduction in November 2020. The RBA also maintained the parameters of the government bond purchase program and the rate of zero percent on Exchange Settlement balances.
- 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 also said it had decided to extend the duration of the Special Program to Support Financing in Response to the Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) by 6 months until the end of March 2022.
- The Monetary Policy and Financial Stability Committee of Norway's Norges Bank decided to keep the policy rate unchanged at 0.0%. The last change in the policy rate was a 25 basis points reduction in May 2020.
- OPEC and non-OPEC members reconfirmed the existing commitment of the 10th OPEC and non-OPEC Ministerial Meeting in April 2020 to gradually return 2 million barrels a day (mb/d) of the adjustments to the market. Members also reconfirmed the decision made at the 15th OPEC and non-OPEC Ministerial Meeting with regards to production adjustments for the month of July 2021.
Financial market news
- West Texas Intermediate crude oil closed at USD $73.47 per barrel on June 30th, up from a closing value of USD $66.32 at the end of May. Western Canadian Select crude oil traded in the USD $54 to $60 per barrel range throughout June. The Canadian dollar closed at 80.68 cents U.S. on June 30th, down from 82.84 cents U.S. at the end of May. The S&P/TSX composite index closed at 20,165.58 on June 30th, up from 19,730.99 at the end of May.