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[saki]

Canadian boomers set to prove McCartney wrong: Survey

The Beatles song, When I'm Sixty-Four, doesn't accurately reflect the retirement lifestyle Canadian baby boomers expect to be living, a new survey suggests.


Knitting by the fire and Sunday drives might have seemed like a reasonable way to spend one's twilight years when Paul McCartney first sang about it more than 40 years go. However, survey results released Tuesday by the Investors Group suggest the boomer generation — the older ones of which are 64 right now — have bolder plans.


A clear majority, 59 per cent of boomers in this poll, conducted by Harris/Decima on behalf of Investors Group, said the song does not accurately portray their idea of retirement.


Instead, the poll found that 61 per cent of those between the ages of 45 and 64 view retirement as "an exciting new stage in life."


"They are gearing up, not shifting down, for what is around the corner," said Debbie Ammeter, vice-president of advanced financial planning for Investors Group. "This generation is defined by their youthfulness. They are upbeat and energetic in their approach to getting older."


Some of the things boomers are looking forward to in retirement include the lack of work pressures, opportunity to travel, additional time for recreation, hobbies and fitness, and chance to become more involved in the community.


The Investors Group poll found that 54 per cent of boomers feel retirement will be "comfortable," 43 per cent anticipate it to be "fulfilling" and 42 per cent expect it to be "busy."


Still, McCartney, who turned 64 four years ago, was apparently not completely off base. A little more than half of the boomers in the survey said the part of the song about "doing the garden, digging the weeds" described something they would be doing in retirement. Other activities more often cited included reading by 73 per cent and watching television by 67 per cent.


But the thread throughout this song of depending on a partner for financial and emotional security didn't resonate, with only 37 per cent anticipating this as a fact of life in their post-employment years.


There is, however, some anxiety among boomers about retirement, the poll found. Fifty-nine per cent have concerns about their finances, and 52 per cent have worries about health. On the financial front, 55 per cent said they would not be able to afford their "dream retirement," while 30 per cent said they lacked enough money to pay for basis expenses. Thirty-six per cent said they would have started saving money for retirement earlier in life if they could do it over again.


Ammeter suggested such findings lend credence to another song from a legendary British rock band — Time Waits for No One by the Rolling Stones.


The results were based on online surveys with 1,014 Canadians between the ages of 45 and 64 from Oct. 28 to Nov. 9. No margin of error was provided.

 

[saki]

September marks end to 16-month string of house price increases


OTTAWA — Canadian home prices declined in September, ending a string of 16 consecutive increases in the Teranet-National Bank House Price Index.


Housing prices dropped 1.1 per cent in September, which also marked the first time since February 2009 that prices declined in all of the metropolitan areas covered by the index.


The index tracks repeat sales of houses in six metropolitan areas using information from public land registries.


Year-over-year price growth also slowed to 7.9 per cent in September, the third consecutive month of deceleration, the report notes, "leaving the 12-month rise the smallest since last January," the Wednesday report said.


However, home prices are still 5.5 per cent higher than their pre-recession peak, says National Bank senior economist Marc Pinsonneault, a far cry from the situation south of the border, where prices are still 28 per cent from their peak.


"September's drop notwithstanding, we do not think that a significant price correction looms in housing," says Pinsonneault, pointing to a balanced new-listings-to-sales ratio and the continuing health of the Canadian economy.


"This being said, the high indebtedness of Canadian households and record home ownership rate argues for a much slower pace of home price appreciation in the coming years."


Shahrzad Mobasher Fard, an economist with TD Economics, said there is "very limited scope" for prices to increased, "given the relatively weak prospects for employment and income growth, along with increases in interest rates.


"Some disparities at the regional level will continue to prevail, however, with cities having lagged the recovery in home prices such as, most notably, Calgary, presenting more potential for an upside if the local economy continues to improve."


Prices fell in September by 2.4 per cent in Halifax, 2.2 per cent in Calgary, 1.6 per cent in Toronto, 0.5 per cent in Ottawa and 0.3 per cent in Montreal and Vancouver, according to the report.


On a year-over-year basis, prices are up 9.2 per cent in Vancouver and Ottawa, nine per cent in Toronto, 7.6 per cent in Montreal, 3.6 per cent in Halifax and 1.7 per cent in Calgary.

 

[saki]

Three Filipino workers face deportation days before Christmas

WINNIPEG — Three fathers in Canada, trying to support their families back in the Philippines, hope they won't be home for Christmas.


The temporary workers face an Immigration and Refugee Board hearing on Dec. 23 after it was discovered they were working at a gas bar in northern Manitoba with expired work permits.


"I hope they let us stay and work," said Ermie Zotomayor. "It's the only means we have to support our families."


The 45-year-old has a bachelor of science in electrical engineering. He and his two educated co-workers — Antonio Laroya, 45, and Arnisito Gaviola, 42 — each paid $3,000 to a recruiter in 2007 to find them service jobs in Canada.


First, they shared a trailer in High Prairie, Alta., and worked at a gas station/restaurant while sending money home to the Philippines for their wives and children. Then, following a downturn in the local economy, they were offered similar jobs in Manitoba.


The men said their prospective employer, in Thompson, Man., was supposed to take care of the expired permits — but he needed them to start right away.


They went to work in February for $10 an hour, sharing an apartment and still sending the bulk of their pay home.


"We were caught in a situation where we have to do what we have to do," said Zotomayor. "We don't want to be a burden."


In late June, the men were arrested at their apartment by the Canada Border Services Agency and held at an RCMP detachment for eight hours.


"We were scared," Laroya said.


The men paid another $1,500 to an immigration consultant in Calgary to help them, not knowing they cannot work while awaiting their Dec. 23 admissibility hearing.


All three have jobs lined up with another employer, but can't take them.


"Filipino friends in Thompson have been helping us out . . . giving us food (and shelter)," Zotomayor said from Winnipeg, where they're sleeping on the floor of a friend's apartment until their pre-Christmas hearing.


Now known as the "three amigos" to Winnipeg's Filipino community, Migrante Canada — a national organization that advances the rights of temporary workers — is fundraising for the men.


The case is far too common, said Diwa Marcelino of the organization Bayan Manitoba, which falls under Migrante Canada.


"They were duped by employers and criminalized for trying to work and survive," he said. "Their only crime is working to provide a better life for their family."


Diwa said employers benefit from cheap, reliable labour and the workers end up losing their livelihoods and being sent home.


According to a government spokeswoman, if the adjudicator decides on Dec. 23 that the men have to leave Canada, they have no right to appeal.


That doesn't seem fair to Jomay Amora-Mercado, the Manitoba representative for Migrante Canada, who is pushing for temporary workers to have the right to apply for permanent-resident status. "They've contributed to the economy of Canada."

 

[saki]

TSX higher on commodity gains

Rising commodity prices helped propel the Toronto Stock Exchange to its second straight positive close on Thursday.


The benchmark S&P/TSX composite index rose 43.82 points, or 0.34 per cent to 12,945.81. Eight of 10 sub-indexes gained, led by energy and financials.


There were no official closing prices for oil and gold on Thursday due to the Thanksgiving Day holiday in the United States, but in late-day electronic trading oil was ahead by 32 cents U.S. to $84.18 U.S. a barrel, while gold had advanced by $1.20 U.S. to $1,374.20 U.S. an ounce.


"Markets are starting to regain a little bit of their stability after what's been going on in Europe," Tony Demarin, chief investment officer at BCV Asset Management in Winnipeg, told Bloomberg. "Risk appetite is starting to enter the market a little and that always speaks well for energy and commodities."


Stocks benefiting from those gains included Suncor, which advanced 0.47 per cent to $34.55, and Petrobank Energy and Resources, which rose 0.69 per cent to $41.03. Barrick Gold Corp. gained 1.07 per cent to close at $52.11.


Financial stocks also advanced ahead of what is expected to be a good earnings season, which begins next week. Royal Bank of Canada's shares were up 0.6 per cent to $52.29, and Toronto-Dominion Bank shares rose 0.67 per cent to $75.31.


Shares of Taskeo Mines Ltd. rose 1.97 per cent to $4.67 amid allegations that a sudden drop in the company's share price in October came as a result of a leak from the Conservative government concerning its decision about whether to allow the company to develop a mine in British Columbia. Ottawa announced a few weeks later that the project would not go ahead.


Uranium One shares rose another 9.66 per cent on Thursday, following a 6.88 per cent gain the previous day, to close at $5.45. It announced Wednesday that all regulatory approvals are in place to proceed with a deal that gives Russian state-owned miner ARMZ a controlling stake interest.


Magna International shares rose 2.15 per cent to $48.89 after a German newspaper reported that the company, based in Aurora, Ont., has no more interest in buying an automobile maker.


U.S. markets were closed for Thanksgiving Day. They will reopen on Friday morning for a half-day of trading.


The Conference Board of Canada reported Thursday that its Help Wanted Index fell for the third time in four months in October, "suggesting the fast pace of job gains seen during the early part of the recovery is over for now," the board said.


A report from Statistics Canada showed average weekly earnings of non-farm employees rising in September to $864.13 — 4.3 per cent higher than in September, 2009. It was the second straight month in which year-over-year wage gains topped four per cent, the federal agency said.


The junior Venture exchange rose 25.43 points to $2,049.01, a gain of 1.26 per cent.


Asian and European indexes also advanced on Thursday.

 

[saki]

When Canadians head overseas, they’re going on vacation: StatsCan


OTTAWA —When Canadians make trips overseas, the majority of them are taking a vacation.

But heading the opposite direction, most overseas residents heading to Canada are here to visit friends and relatives, according to data released Thursday by Statistics Canada.

Canadians made 1.3 million overnight trips to overseas countries for pleasure, while 351,000 made overnight trips to visit friends and relatives in overseas countries. They spent $438 million while vacationing, according to the national reporting agency.

In contrast, overseas residents only took 386,000 overnight pleasure trips to Canada, while taking 428,000 overnight trips to visit friends and relatives in Canada. Overseas visitors spent $446 million while vacationing in Canada.

The majority of visitors to Canada came from the United Kingdom, France and Germany, while most Canadians headed to the U.K. when travelling overseas.

Canadians also made three million overnight pleasure trips to the U.S. in the second quarter of 2010, spending $3.1 billion. In addition, Canadians headed south of the border on 607,000 overnight business trips, spending $545 million.

Americans took 1.7 million overnight pleasure trips to Canada during the same time frame and spent $889 million on their trips. They also took 487,000 overnight business trips, spending $435 million in Canada.

The majority of the cross-border trips taken by both Canadians and Americans were accomplished via vehicle, but air travel was more common for Canadians.

More than one-third of the trips made by Canadians were by air, while 29.8 per cent of Americans flew.

The most popular destinations for Canadians was New York state, followed by Florida and Washington state. The top three states of origin for American visitors to Canada were New York, Michigan and Washington.

 

[Shinygirl]

Thanks Saki

 

[saki]

Black Friday shoppers a good sign of economic recovery

It's been a week of worry for those who get their news from the headlines. Ireland possibly near financial collapse. Rumours of war in Korea. Stocks falling and the loonie plunging as investors scurried for cover.


And yet, while all these worrisome portents are real, they only tell part of the story. A growing number of stories in the back pages of your newspaper tell another tale, one that's likely more important


It's symbolized by Friday's encouraging news about Black Friday, the counterintuitively titled day when U.S. Christmas sales are kicked off with doorbuster specials.


Black Friday, so known because it's held to be the day of the year when many retailers can finally begin recording their accounts in black (for profit), is a pretty good indicator of consumer spending for the final months of the year.


Friday saw thousands of shoppers lining up to pour into Macy's in New York and outsized crowds similarly thronging malls and department stores across the country.


This caps a week of news that has even the most cautious analysts suggesting that the world's biggest economy is finally settling into a rhythm of growth that should enable it to sustain a full-fledged recovery.


Canadians should take this as an early Christmas gift, since about a quarter of this country's economy depends on American demand for our exports.


This big chunk of Canadian jobs and business profits has been hurting for nearly three years, and was considered to be in serious jeopardy as recently as late summer, when faltering U.S. growth seemed to be teetering between feeble recovery and a return trip into recession.


But a gradually improving picture in the U.S. was confirmed this past week when U.S. government bean counters revised their numbers on economic growth, bumping up its pace in the three months ended September to a decent 2.5 per cent from the anemic first reading of 2.0 per cent.


And as if they somehow sensed that things were improving, Americans have already boosted their optimism and spending.


One fascinating glimpse of this comes to us courtesy of Avery Shenfeld, chief economist at CIBC World Markets, who thought to use the Google Trends service to check on searches for the term "double dip" (as in double-dip recession).


He found that after spiking sharply in June and reaching a peak late in August, people's focus on "double dip" rapidly diminished, plunging back to its normal low level by late October. Google also tracks the number of news-media mentions of the term, and it followed the same path.


It would take a courageous analyst to predict that the diminished fear of catastrophe means boom times are here, and Shenfeld isn't saying that.


But he is saying that sustained American growth is a lot more likely than it seemed just a little while ago. That, he concludes in a letter to clients, is "still worth being thankful for here in Canada, where so much of our fortune is still dictated by conditions to our south."


Senior economist Sal Guatieri over at BMO Capital Markets has much the same impression. Back in January, his firm stuck its neck out and specified what developments would tell us that the U.S. recovery was actually for real.


There were five of these:


- a rise in hiring


- healthy growth in consumer spending


- robust business investment in new equipment


- recovery in the housing market


- growth in bank lending


As of right now, three of these five are in flashing green: payroll growth has averaged a modest but respectable 132,000 per month since July, consumer spending showed its strongest growth in four years during the three months ended September and business investment surged 11 per cent in the same period.


Of course, the other two indicators have yet to turn around. One, housing, may be stuck in a rut for some time. Bank lending is still sagging, largely because of housing — but even here there's a hopeful portent: lending to small businesses is said the be flowing again after a long drought, a good sign for future employment growth.


Guatieri's bottom line: while all this isn't good enough to foreshadow the powerful growth rebound that's typical after a recession, he's now convinced that today's growth rate will persist instead of collapsing. His best guess: moderate U.S. growth through 2011, building into a fairly strong expansion the following year.

 

[saki]

Spending by visitors to Canada up 2.3 per cent

OTTAWA — Canada's travel deficit with the rest of the world declined in the third quarter of 2010 as visitors to this country spent more and Canadians tightened their belts aboard.


Statistics Canada said Friday the shortfall narrowed by $235 million to $3.4 billion during the quarter, down from a record level of $3.7 billion in previous three-month period.


Spending by visitors to Canada rose 2.3 per cent between July and September to $4.1 billion, while Canadians spent $7.5 billion outside the country, a decline of 1.8 per cent.


U.S. travellers increased their spending in Canada by 1.2 per cent to $1.8 billion, the agency said. At the same time, Americans made 2.9 per cent more trips to Canada.


Same-day car travel by Americans was up four per cent to 1.9 million, while overnight visits rose 2.4 per cent to about three million.


Meanwhile, spending by Canadians south of the border decline 4.9 per cent to $4.4 billion in the United States in the third quarter.


Overnight trips by Canadians to the U.S. slipped 0.1 per cent to five million trips, while same-day car travel increased 0.2 per cent to six million.


"Canada's travel deficit with countries other than the United States remained relatively unchanged at $888 million during the third quarter," Statistics Canada said. "This occurred as spending by overseas visitors in Canada rebounded by 3.2 per cent to a record high of $2.3 billion."

 

[saki]

Bigger vehicles driving Canadian auto market

OTTAWA — Surging sales of minivans and pickup trucks have driven better-than-expected automobile sales in Canada this year, according to a report from Scotia Economics on Friday.


The report said the category of light trucks — which includes pickup trucks, minivans, SUVs and crossover vehicles — has grown to 54 per cent of the Canadian new-vehicle market share so far this year, up from 49 per cent last year.


Scotia Economics senior economist Carlos Gomes said overall auto sales in Canada are up about seven per cent so far in 2010. Coming into this year, he was expecting gains closer to four per cent.


"Within that, it's specifically the light trucks that are posting the strongest gains, and we're seeing that they are actually outpacing car sales for the first time on record," he said.


Dealer incentives for bigger vehicles are largely behind the 38 per cent surge this year in minivan sales and 22 per cent rise in pickup-truck sales, the Scotia report said.


Helping boost overall auto sales in Canada this year, the report said, has been the strong job market. It noted that Canada and Germany are the only Group of Seven countries where employment numbers have returned to pre-recession levels.


Gomes said heavy incentives, which have gone as high as 30 per cent in the last year as a proportion of the prices for pickup trucks, are largely due to efforts by vehicle manufacturers to gain market share in this segment.


With discounts for these vehicles expected to lessen in the coming year and gasoline prices back on the rise, Gomes said pickup-truck sales should "soften somewhat."


Minivan sales are expected to maintain much of their momentum, however, as there is growth in the key demographic for such vehicles — those between the ages of 30 and 40.


And crossover vehicles should continue to see sales growth, Gomes predicted. They have not been subject to significant incentive programs, and have been increasing in popularity for years due to their combination of fuel efficiency and practicality, he said.

 

[mayankpandya]

Skilled worker immigrants faring well in Canada, new evaluation shows


Ottawa, November 25, 2010 — Immigrants selected by the federal government under the current skilled worker program are contributing to Canada's economy, a new evaluation has found.

The evaluation measured whether the current federal skilled worker program is selecting immigrants who are more likely to succeed economically in Canada. In 2009, federal skilled workers made up approximately 10 percent of Canada's annual immigration intake—25 percent when one includes spouses and dependent children.

According to the evaluation, the biggest predictors of an immigrant’s economic success are having a job already arranged in Canada when applying; the ability to speak English or French; and having worked in Canada before applying to immigrate. Having studied in Canada for at least two years and having a relative in Canada are less of a determinant of success.

“The evaluation showed that skilled immigrants are doing well in Canada and filling gaps in our work force,” said Minister of Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism Jason Kenney. “This puts some dents in the doctors-driving-taxis stereotype.”

The findings revealed that the selection criteria, put in place when the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA) became law, have been successful in improving the outcomes of skilled immigrants by placing more emphasis on arranged employment, language and education. Income for skilled workers selected under the IRPA criteria was as much as 65 percent higher than for workers chosen under the pre-IRPA system. Skilled workers who already had a job offer when they applied for permanent residence fared best of all, earning on average $79,200 three years after arriving in Canada. The findings also revealed that skilled workers selected under the IRPA criteria were less likely to rely on employment insurance or social assistance.

Among other recommendations, the evaluation suggested placing higher priority on younger workers, and increasing the integrity of the arranged employment part of the program, which is susceptible to fraud. The evaluation also recommended that further emphasis be placed on fluency in English or French, and supported the Minister’s June 2010 decision to require language testing for federal skilled worker applicants to combat fraud.

“We’re pleased the evaluation showed that the program is working as intended,” said Minister Kenney. “We’re committed to making it even better and will be consulting on improvements in the coming weeks.” The Department is planning to put forward for public consultation several proposals to improve the program, building on the achievements in the evaluation report.

 

[saki]

TSX manages slight gain on down day in the markets

The Toronto Stock Exchange started the week on a positive note — a feat most other North American and European indexes were unable to match, as the EU-IMF bailout in Ireland failed to allay concerns that the European debt crisis was contained.


Rallying after a day spent in negative territory, the benchmark S&P/TSX composite index closed with a bare 2.94-point gain, an increase of 0.02 per cent, at 12,895.65, as oil and gold prices rose. Three of 10 sub-indexes advanced, led by energy and financials.


Asian markets gained on Monday, but European indexes declined.


"Given the present state of discord, the skepticism displayed by the market in the European session is warranted," wrote David Tulk, senior macro strategist at TD Securities, in an afternoon note about market reaction to the 85-billion-euro Irish bailout.


"Furthermore, in what is an unfortunate reminder of the tone-deaf nature of policymakers, whatever optimism that the bailout provided was tempered by a separate announcement that the next iteration of the European Stabilization Mechanism (set to be in place in 2013) will ensure that new government loans as of that date will be senior to private sector creditors. We do not dispute that this differentiation is necessary, but we question the timing of the announcement."


On the New York Mercantile Exchange, the price of oil closed at its highest point in two weeks, $85.73, a gain of $1.97. Gold also rose, up $3.20 to $1,367.50.


A rally in financial stocks helped U.S. markets trim their earlier losses on Monday. An announcement from RBC Capital Markets that it expects Wells Fargo to boost dividends next year helped send bank stocks higher on what one U.S. analyst called "a disappointing day overall."


Part of that disappointment came from investors who had expected sales on Black Friday, which kicks off the lucrative Christmas retail season south of the border, to be better.


"It seems that shoppers found it easier to navigate the crowds without the burden of shopping bags, as the increase in traffic failed to translate to an advance in sales," wrote Tulk. "We seek further confirmation of the health of holiday sales in the coming days."


The Dow Jones industrial average closed the day at 11,052.49, a drop of 39.51 points or 0.36 per cent. The Nasdaq composite was 9.34 points lower at 2,525.22, a loss of 0.37 per cent.


Canada's junior Venture exchange was down 6.20 points, or 0.30 per cent, at 2,050.80.


Some Canadian stocks were able to benefit from rising commodity prices on Monday, including Suncor Energy, which rose 1.55 per cent to close at $34.69. Husky Energy dropped 3.72 per cent after it said it would sell $1 billion worth of stock to pay for its 2011 capital plan. Husky shares closed at 24.57.


Stocks in the materials sector fared less well, with Barrick Gold losing 1.27 per cent to close at $51.19, and Kinross Gold dropping 2.81 per cent to $17.65.


Gold explorer Rubicon Minerals gained 33.26 per cent to $6.13 after it announced a project in Ontario might contain four million ounces of gold.


Uranium One fell to $5.09, a decline of 5.91 per cent, after an analyst cut the stock from "buy" to "hold," citing recent gains in the share price.

 

[saki]

Canadian, U.S. business owners think recession still on: Survey

OTTAWA — More than a year after the technical end of recessions in both Canada and the United States, most business owners in both countries who took part in a recent survey believe recessions are still underway.


The BMO Financial Group survey, released Monday, showed 52 per cent of Canadian business owners saying this country's economy is still in recession, and 88 per cent of American business people saying the same thing about their economy.


The standard benchmark for a recession in Canada is two straight quarters of declining gross domestic product. This happened for three quarters in a row before growth resumed in the third quarter of 2009.


In the U.S., the National Bureau of Economic Research is mandated with declaring the beginning and end of recessions. This organization said the last recession started in December 2007 and ended in June 2009.


Are business owners not paying attention to economic news, do they not believe the official data or do they have a different idea about what a "recession" is?


BMO offered the following explanation from Douglas Porter, deputy chief economist from its BMO Capital Markets division: "Persistent weakness in U.S. spending is likely driving a percentage of Canadian businesses that still believe we are in recession, even though the economy has grown by nearly four per cent in the past year."


Catherine Swift, president of the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, said business owners are aware of economic developments, but their views are coloured by their own experience.


"It's almost irrelevant to your average business owner," Swift said of whether the recession is over or not. "They're looking at their own business behaviour."


She added that a lot of "doom and gloom" remains in the news with respect to the economy, particularly as it pertains to the U.S. and Europe.


The survey showed Canadian business owners much more favourable about their country's economy than their U.S. peers.


Forty-five per cent of business owners in Canada said they felt the economy is growing, compared to just 12 per cent in the U.S.


In both countries, owners of smaller firms had grimmer views than leaders of larger businesses. More than half the owners of Canadian businesses with less than 50 employees — 53 per cent — said the country is still in recession. Just 40 per cent of those owning larger businesses felt this way.


In the U.S., 88 per cent of small-business owners said the country remains in recession, compared to 82 per cent of owners of larger companies.


The data was based on online interviews of 650 business owners in Canada, and an equal number in the United States, between Sept. 22 and Oct. 10. The survey was conducted by market-research firm Harris/Decima. No margin of error was provided.

 

[saki]

Canada to announce world's toughest lead regulations for kids' products


OTTAWA — The federal government is introducing the most stringent rules in the world to effectively ban lead from toys for young children and other products that kids put in their mouths.


The new regulations, to be touted Monday by Health Minister Leona Aglukkaq and published before the end of the year, will limit the lead content in toys intended for children under three years of age to 0.009 per cent. The same limit will be applied to products, other than kitchen utensils, that come into contact with the mouth, such as soothers, baby bibs, straws and drinking spouts.


This will put Canada ahead of other countries.


The United States has a limit of 0.03 per cent total lead on all products intended for children age 12 and under, to be reduced to 0.01 per cent next August. Many other jurisdictions, such as Australia, have a limit of 0.009 per cent of migratable lead, but Health Canada is opting for a cap on total lead because the department says this takes into account regular wear and tear of products, including those with protective coatings that children mouth.


Health Canada is also amending regulations to significantly lower the level of total lead allowed in consumer paints and surface coating materials of select products.


The new limit of 0.009 per cent, down from 0.06 per cent, will be among the strictest in the world — effectively eliminating the intentional use of lead in most consumer paints and children's products covered by the rules, including children's furniture, toys, equipment and other products intended for children in learning or play that contain a surface-coating material.


"As a mom, I'm proud that our new, tough regulations will make Canada a world leader in strict lead reduction in consumer products, especially toys," said Aglukkaq.


Playing with a toy with lead is not a necessarily a health hazard, but ingesting lead through mouthing a toy or swallowing a piece, even with low levels of lead, can wreak havoc with a young brain and cause permanent brain damage if there is long-term exposure.


Health Canada says the new limits are needed because while reputable companies do their best to ensure lead has not been added intentionally to their products, companies can still run into trouble with quality control when importing huge volumes of goods in complex supply chains.


The new regulations will give the government the legal authority to prevent the importation or sale of products containing total lead levels in excess of 0.009 per cent.


But the new rules won't mean children's products with high levels of lead won't make their way into the Canadian marketplace.


The legal limit for lead content in jewelry designed for or marketed to children under 15 years is 0.06 per cent — a strict limit put in place five years ago so overseas manufacturers would stop using toxic raw materials to make pendants and other jewelry items destined for Canada.


Five years later, Health Canada tests continue to show items made of almost pure lead are sold in Canada, including at reputable retailers such as Garage, which earlier this year recalled two pieces of jewelry made of 87 and 90 per cent lead.


Since 2008, Health Canada has also begun to see the use of cadmium as a substitute for lead in children's jewelry — at levels as high as 93 per cent cadmium, considered more toxic than lead,


There are currently no regulations in place to limit cadmium in children's jewelry and toys, but Health Canada is conducting the tests to determine if regulations to ban its use in children's jewelry are necessary, according to a summary of Health Canada's 2009-10 test results released to Postmedia News under access-to-information legislation.

 

[saki]

Home affordability improves in Canada: RBC

OTTAWA -- Owning a home in Canada became more affordable in recent months, according to the Royal Bank of Canada.


RBC Economics Research released a report Monday saying the proportion of pre-tax household income it takes to own a home declined in the third quarter of 2010 after a full year of deteriorating home-ownership affordability. Lower home prices and mortgage rates were the reasons for the recent improvement.


"The improvement in affordability during the third quarter has relieved some of the stress that had been mounting in Canada's housing market over the past year," said Robert Hogue, senior economist for RBC. "After appreciating rapidly during the strong rebound in resale activity last year and early this year, national home prices recently came off the burner and retreated modestly as market conditions cooled considerably through the spring and summer."


RBC said it took 40.4 per cent of household income, on average across the country, to own a bungalow between July and September. That was 2.4 percentage points lower than the second quarter.


The cost for owning a standard two-storey home fell 2.5 points to 46.3 per cent on income, and the affordability rate for condominiums was down 1.4 points to 27.8 per cent.


Looking at the percentage of household income needed to own bungalows in major markets across the country, it was 68.8 per cent in Vancouver, 47.2 per cent in Toronto, 41.7 per cent in Montreal, 38.2 per cent in Ottawa, 37.1 per cent in Calgary and 32.7 per cent in Edmonton.

 

[malu08]

GM adds 700 workers at factory near Toronto


General Motors Co. has added 700 workers to its Oshawa, Ontario, factory near Toronto to make the 2011 Chevrolet Camaro convertible muscle car and the new Buick Regal midsize car, the company said Monday.

Camaro convertible production is scheduled to start in January, while the plant will start making Regals early in the spring.

The added employees began work Monday on a second shift at one of the factory's two assembly lines. Just two months after GM added a third shift on another line to make more Chevrolet Equinox crossover vehicles, one of the company's hottest sellers. The Equinox looks like a sport utility vehicle but is more fuel efficient and handles better because it's based on car underpinnings.

GM said the 700 jobs, coupled with those added for Equinox production, have secured more than 1,300 jobs at the plant including the recall of 1,000 laid-off workers and the hiring of 300 new employees.

The Equinox and its sister vehicle, the GMC Terrain, are made at a plant in Ingersoll, Ontario, but GM figured out a way to assemble them at Oshawa as well to handle high demand. The Buick Regal is now imported from Germany, but Oshawa will begin supplying the U.S. and Canada next year.

The Oshawa plant now makes the Camaro hardtop and the Chevrolet Impala.