Ottawa, ON, September 17, 2018 – Statistics released today by The Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) show a small increase in national home sales between July and August 2018. Highlights: National home sales rose 0.9% from July to August. Actual (not seasonally adjusted) activity was down 3.8% from August 2017. The number of newly listed homes… View More >
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Canadian home sales activity strengthens in July
Ottawa, ON, August 15, 2018 – Statistics released today by The Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) show national home sales were up from June to July 2018. Highlights: National home sales rose 1.9% from June to July. Actual (not seasonally adjusted) activity was down 1.3% from July 2017. The number of newly listed homes edged… View More >
Canadian home sales activity improves in June
Ottawa, ON, July 16, 2018 – Statistics released today by The Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) show national home sales were up from May to June 2018. Highlights: National home sales rose 4.1% from May to June. Actual (not seasonally adjusted) activity was down 10.7% from June 2017. The number of newly listed homes eased… View More >
Canadian home sales at five-year low in May
Ottawa, ON, June 15, 2018 – Statistics released today by The Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) show national home sales were little changed from April to May 2018. Highlights: National home sales edged down 0.1% from April to May. Actual (not seasonally adjusted) activity was down 16.2% from May 2017. The number of newly listed… View More >
Canadian home sales fall in April
Ottawa, ON, May 15, 2018 – Statistics released today by The Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) show national home sales fell from March to April 2018. Highlights: National home sales fell 2.9% from March to April. Actual (not seasonally adjusted) activity was down 13.9% from April 2017. The number of newly listed homes declined 4.8%… View More >
Canadian home sales improve slightly in March
Ottawa, ON, April 13, 2018 – Statistics released today by The Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) show national home sales edged higher from February to March 2018. Highlights: National home sales inched up 1.3% from February to March. Actual (not seasonally adjusted) activity was down 22.7% from last year’s all-time March record. The number of… View More >
Canadian home sales fall further in February
Ottawa, ON, March 15, 2018 – Statistics released today by The Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) show national home sales declined further in February 2018. Highlights: National home sales declined by 6.5% from January to February. Actual (not seasonally adjusted) activity was down 16.9% year-over-year (y-o-y) in February. The number of newly listed homes recovered… View More >
Canadian home sales surge in December
Ottawa, ON, January 15, 2018 – Statistics released today by The Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA), show national home sales continued to climb in December 2017. Highlights: National home sales rose 4.5% from November to December. Actual (not seasonally adjusted) activity was up 4.1% year-over-year (y-o-y). The number of newly listed homes climbed 3.3% from… View More >
Laura-Leah Shaw, REALTOR® from Vancouver, selected for national award celebrating wide range of philanthropic work
OTTAWA, March 27, 2017 – The Canadian REALTORS Care® Foundation has named Laura-Leah Shaw, of Vancouver, British Columbia, the recipient of its national award – the Canadian REALTORS Care® Award 2017 Proudly Presented by REM. Shaw, of RE/MAX Crest Realty Westside, was selected because of the multitude of charities and activist organizations she actively supports…. View More >
Bank of Canada sees stronger economy, oil prices a double-edged sword
Thu, 12/04/2014 – 15:22
The Bank of Canada announced on December 3rd, 2014 that it was holding its trend-setting overnight lending rate at 1 per cent.
Economic conditions around the world have changed rapidly in recent months. The Bank’s December 3rd announcement took a decidedly “on the one hand, on the other hand” approach in addressing how recent developments have altered not only the outlook for inflation and the economy, but also the risks to that outlook.
While it considers the potential upside and downside risks to be balanced, the Bank sees them as having intensified.
- Risks to the Canadian economy: On the upside, the Bank acknowledged Canadian exports as having improved, resulting in stronger business investment and employment, suggesting the return of balanced and self-sustaining growth. On the downside, the Bank indicated lower prices for oil and other commodities will act as a drag on the Canadian economy, and that household imbalances present a significant risk to financial stability.
- Inflation risks: On the downside: weaker oil prices could lower inflation. On the upside, The impact of lower oil price may be tempered by a stronger U.S. economy, Canadian dollar depreciation, and recent federal fiscal measures. The Bank acknowledged inflation is up by more than expected due largely to what it considers to be temporary factors, and while underlying inflation has edged up it remains below the 2 per cent target.
- Interest rate risks: On the upside, developments as outlined above together with upward revisions to past economic data suggest that slackness in the Canadian economy may be less than the Bank previously thought. That means the expected date for the first interest rate hike could be moved up. On the downside, conditions in the labour market continue to suggest there is still plenty of slackness in the Canadian economy. Additionally, lower oil prices could mean slower growth and more time before the Bank starts raising interest rates.
What does all this mean for the interest rate outlook? At this point, not much. The first hike is still pencilled in for later next year. Whether that outlook changes will depend on what happens in the months ahead – and perhaps most importantly, what happens to the price of oil.
As of December 3rd, 2014, the advertised five-year lending rate stood at 4.79 per cent, unchanged from the previous Bank rate announcement on October 22nd, 2014 and down 0.55 percentage points from the same time one year ago.
The next interest rate announcement along with the next update to the Monetary Policy Report will be on January 21st, 2015.
(CREA 12/03/2014)
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