My wife and I thoroughly enjoyed LetterKenny Live, and as part of the show is stand-up from K. Trevor Wilson. Mr. Wilson’s comedy is very topical and he had financial advice for young folks that… Read More »More Financial Advice from a Comedian
Interest rates continue to stay at 1.25% for the overnight rate, (March 2018).I suspect that, given the economy’s current state, we won’t see another rate hike for a little while. Their statement seems to imply that they are unsure where things might be going in the next little while.
Inflation is running close to the 2 per cent target and the Bank’s core measures of inflation have edged up, consistent with an economy operating near capacity. Wage growth has firmed, but remains lower than would be typical in an economy with no labour market slack. Inflation is fluctuating because of temporary factors related to gasoline, electricity, and minimum wages
Bank of Canada March 2018
This seems to point a wagging finger at Ontario’s minimum wage increase, but it asks why wages normally don’t go up given how few unemployed folks are out there. We seem to live in interesting economic times.
Belated Happy International Women’s Day! As the father of 3 wonderful women, and the proud son of a trailblazing woman (my mother had a Statistics Degree in 1951, which was a rarity), I stand in awe. Do we have wage parity? Nope. Do we have gender equality? Nope. I think we still have a lot of work to do.
It is not only Tax Season again; it is that weekend when the clocks go forward (in most places in Canada and the US). There is talk of sticking with Daylight Savings Time, we shall see where that might leads, but if you won’t put your clocks forward you will be late all day Sunday.
Luckily I got something interesting in the mail to write about this week, with RDSP Statement of Grant Entitlement . Once you have gotten through the DTC maze, set up an RDSP and started putting money in it for your loved one, this is the most important document you will receive every year (aside from any reassessment notices from the CRA of course).
If you somehow think that the Government is going to escape the Phoenix Pay system debacle unscathed, I don’t think the media in Ottawa is going to allow that to happen.
Who knew that this time of year had so many financial events? You have the RRSP deadline, tax preparation time and for some another important event. At the beginning of February I receive the Annual… Read More »RDSP Statement of Grant Entitlement
How does a system named Phoenix go down in flames? The $1B payroll system, will be repaired enough to work (at much further cost), and then it will be replaced by something else? It was obvious that the current Government wanted this albatross from around their neck, but is this enough? We shall see if this helps or hinders them.
An interesting budget. It’s interesting that fiscal conservatism (note the small C) has gone right out the window in North America as a whole. Balanced budgets are a thing of the past, I suppose? There is an extension of the RDSP qualifying plan holders program, which will help families still trying to figure out the RDSP Statutory Guardian world (it is really not easy, and it is expensive too).
Last week Stats Canada published the January Consumer Price Index numbers, and as usual they are interesting.
The Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose 1.7% on a year-over-year basis in January, following a 1.9% increase in December. Excluding energy, the CPI increased 1.7%, matching the gain in December.
Interesting that energy did not cause issues this month.
Looking with a little more detailed eye we can see year over year:
Main upward contributors:
- Gasoline (+7.8%)
- Food purchased from restaurants (+3.7%)
- Homeowners’ replacement cost (+3.5%)
- Air transportation (+12.2%)
- Purchase of passenger vehicles (+1.4%)
Main downward contributors:
- Electricity (-5.0%)
- Travel tours (-2.5%)
- Digital computing equipment and devices (-4.9%)
- Video equipment (-10.0%)
- Natural gas (-3.0%)
Gas is really up year over year, but not really month over month. Eating out continues to rise in cost too.
I found something in my backlog of over 300 unfinished titles, with, Credit is the Lubricant for the Wheels of Business, which really should have been title Credit is the Opiate of the Consumer. Banks, and stores want you to use credit but trussing yourself up with easy credit is a dangerous game to play.
Will Payday loans go away? Not likely, according to Hoyes Michalos.
What drives the economy? Credit is the lubricant that helps the cogs of the economic machine run smoothly, but what happens when credit stops?
