2-hour wildfire evacuation notice issued for some Fort McMurray neighbourhoods
A wildfire evacuation alert for some Fort McMurray residents has been updated to a two-hour evacuation notice.
The Canadian economy appears to have bounced back after its worst two-month stretch since the start of the pandemic, eking out a gain in June and growth in the second quarter of the year.
Statistics Canada said its preliminary estimate is that real gross domestic product grew at an annualized rate of 2.5 per cent between April and June, buttressed by a 0.7 per cent rise in June as pandemic restrictions eased following declines of 0.5 per cent in April and 0.3 per cent in May.
The decline in May put total economic activity about two per cent below pre-pandemic levels seen in February 2020. The agency said that with growth in June, total economic activity was about one per cent below pre-pandemic levels.
Getting through the last one per cent may not take much longer, even though some sectors have longer to go than others, said Desjardins chief economist Jimmy Jean.
Restrictions are rolling back in much of the country as vaccination rates rise, and with early indications suggesting a boost in activity, the country should see a pretty strong rebound in the third quarter absent any hiccups, Jean said.
"I think we will also be talking about the Canadian economy having fully recuperated its pre-pandemic losses," he said.
"That's an important milestone, but I think we also have to remember that we're still not quite there when it comes to the labour market. That's where there's still quite some ways to go."
The uneven recovery in sectors prompted the federal government on Friday to announce it was extending aid to businesses and workers until Oct. 23, and freezing benefits at current rates.
Speaking in Hamilton, Ont., Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland said the government wanted to ensure small businesses in particular have the support they need so the country can have a full and robust recovery.
The GDP figures Friday outpaced the Bank of Canada's forecast earlier this month that the economy would grow at an annualized rate of two per cent in the second quarter. The central bank expects the economy to grow at an annualized rate of 7.3 per cent this quarter.
"Spring lockdowns in much of the country triggered the first monthly GDP declines in a year, but those setbacks are expected to be reversed in relatively short order, with June's rebound alone almost doing the job," said BMO chief economist Douglas Porter.
For May, Statistics Canada said retail declined by 2.7 per cent after a drop of 5.7 per cent in April as the sector was weighed down by restrictions on in-person shopping meant to combat the third wave of COVID-19.
The accommodation and food services sector was similarly affected by restrictions and declined by 2.4 per cent in May, which was not as bad as the 4.3 per cent drop in April.
Statistics Canada said manufacturing declined 0.8 per cent in May, marking the third contraction in four months.
The agency also noted that residential building construction dropped 4.2 per cent in May, down for the first time since November 2020, and a decline of 0.4 per cent in the real estate sector as home resale activity slowed.
"As housing sales and construction levels gradually return to more sustainable levels, this area of the economy could be a drag on growth in coming months," noted TD senior economist Sri Thanabalasingam.
Statistics Canada said the easing of public health restrictions in many provinces in June helped reverse the slide in sectors reliant on in-person services, like retail, accommodation and food services, which all saw growth.
The agency adds that there were also gains in manufacturing in June, while construction and wholesale trade appear to have contracted.
The figures for June and the second quarter will be finalized at the end of August.
CIBC senior economist Royce Mendes said the economy has some open road to recover more lost ground this summer with virus cases generally low across the country.
"That said, there remain challenges on the horizon, most notably in the form of variants of the virus which have slowed progress towards healing in other developed economies," he wrote in a note.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 30, 2021.
A wildfire evacuation alert for some Fort McMurray residents has been updated to a two-hour evacuation notice.
Saskatchewan RCMP are set to provide an update on what the service calls a 'significant' sexual assault and internet child exploitation investigation.
Canadian LifeLabs customers who filed an application for a class-action settlement began receiving their payments this week, though at a much lower amount than initially expected.
Nobel laureate Alice Munro, the Canadian literary giant who became one of the world's most esteemed contemporary authors and one of history's most honoured short story writers, has died at age 92.
Wildfires have led Environment Canada to issue air quality advisories for parts of B.C., Alberta, Manitoba, Saskatchewan and the Northwest Territories, as forecasters warn the smoke could drift farther east.
An American accused of sexually assaulting a Pennsylvania college student in 2013 and later sending her a Facebook message that said, 'So I raped you,' has been detained in France after a three-year search.
The annual list of Canada's top restaurants in the country was just released and here are the places that made the 2024 cut.
Ontario Provincial Police are responding to a fatal collision involving two vehicles on Highway 417 in Ottawa's west end on Tuesday morning.
The Israeli flag is flying at Ottawa City Hall today to mark the country's national day, with plans to hold a private ceremony to mark Israel's Independence Day. There is a significant police presence at City Hall, including security barriers outside the main doors.
A team is ready to help an entangled North Atlantic right whale in the Gulf of St. Lawrence.
A $200 reward is being offered by a North Vancouver family for the safe return of their beloved chicken, Snowflake.
Two daughters and a mother were reunited online 40 years later thanks to a DNA kit and a Zoom connection despite living on three separate continents and speaking different languages.
Mother's Day can be a difficult occasion for those who have lost or are estranged from their mom.
YES Theatre Young Company opened its acclaimed kids’ show, One Small Step, at Sudbury Theatre Centre on Saturday.
An Ottawa pizzeria is being recognized as one of the top 20 deep-dish pizzas in the world.
A family of fifth generation farmers from Ituna, Sask. are trying to find answers after discovering several strange objects lying on their land.
A Listowel, Ont. man, drafted by the Hamilton Tigercats last week, is also getting looks from the NFL, despite only playing 27 games of football in his life.
The threat of zebra mussels has prompted the federal government to temporarily ban watercraft from a Manitoba lake popular with tourists.