The Northwest Territories economy will rebound from the Covid-19 pandemic this year thanks to widespread vaccinations and a booming construction industry, according to the Business Development Bank of CanadaSA国际影视传媒檚 (BDC) chief economist.
SA国际影视传媒淭here are actually more jobs today than before the pandemic,SA国际影视传媒� said Pierre Cl茅roux, during a webinar session hosted by the Yellowknife Chamber of Commerce for Small Business Week. SA国际影视传媒淭he rebound of the territorial economy has been stronger than in other parts of the country.SA国际影视传媒�
There were over 23,000 jobs in the territory in September, SA国际影视传媒渁 higher level than before the pandemic in February 2020,SA国际影视传媒� he said.
SA国际影视传媒淎s a result, the unemployment rate is very low,SA国际影视传媒� he said. SA国际影视传媒淎t 4.5 per cent, itSA国际影视传媒檚 the lowest in the country, much lower than the Canadian average (of 6.9 per cent).SA国际影视传媒�
The construction industry is leading the charge. Last year in Yellowknife, 54 housing units began construction, a boost of about 60 per cent compared to the 35 houses that were started in 2019.
In addition, SA国际影视传媒渘ew mines are on the way,SA国际影视传媒� said Cl茅roux and their initial development will create many jobs in the construction sector.
SA国际影视传媒淭hese construction projects that we are seeing will stimulate the economy for at least the next two or three years,SA国际影视传媒� he said.
In addition, the high number of vaccinated Canadians has also been good for the economy.
SA国际影视传媒淪eventy-two per cent of all Canadians has been fully vaccinated so far,SA国际影视传媒� he said. SA国际影视传媒淭his is actually the best level of all the G7 countries. Much better than the United States (which sits at 56 per cent).SA国际影视传媒�
The territory, buoyed by several high-profile construction projects related to the proposed Prairie Creek Mine, the Pine Point mine project and Fortune MineralsSA国际影视传媒� cobalt-gold-bismuth-copper NICO project, will bounce back somewhat faster than the rest of the country, he concluded, though tourism-dependent leisure and hospitality businesses will take much longer to recuperate.
SA国际影视传媒淪ome sectors were really impacted (by the pandemic) and the most was accommodation and food services, everything related to tourism,SA国际影视传媒� said Cl茅roux. SA国际影视传媒淚tSA国际影视传媒檚 improving now as restrictions are getting lowerSA国际影视传媒s we move away from the pandemic, we should be able to open our borders to the rest of the world and that should really help tourism.SA国际影视传媒�
SA国际影视传媒淏ut tourism is the last sector that is going to go back to normal compared to other sectors in our economy,SA国际影视传媒� he added.
More bad news is the territorySA国际影视传媒檚 diamond exports have been slowing down, totalling $1.1 billion in 2020 compared to $1.7 billion in 2019, he said, due to declining global demand, especially in India.
SA国际影视传媒淚f we look over time, 2020 was the lowest level of export over the last 10 years,SA国际影视传媒� he said. SA国际影视传媒淭he good news is in 2021, the level of exports is actually increasing. WeSA国际影视传媒檙e not back to the pre-crisis level but we are improving.SA国际影视传媒�
During his presentation, Cl茅roux said CanadaSA国际影视传媒檚 gross domestic product dropped 5.4 per cent in 2020 but predicted the countrySA国际影视传媒檚 GDP would grow 5.2 per cent in 2021 and 4 per cent in 2022.
He also noted ongoing Covid-19 restrictions, supply chain issues, price volatility and labour shortages would continue to dampen the national and territorial recovery.
When asked how the scarcity of workers is limiting the growth of most Canadian businesses, as a new BDC report notes 64 per cent of entrepreneurs say labour shortage is limiting their growth, Cl茅roux said this is an ongoing problem across the country with SA国际影视传媒渘o magic bullet to solve this issue.SA国际影视传媒�
SA国际影视传媒淭he main reason is the fact that we have an aging population in Canada,SA国际影视传媒� he said.
SA国际影视传媒淓ighteen per cent of Canadians are over 65 years old and it used to be only 10 per cent about 20 years ago, so a lot of Canadians are retiring.SA国际影视传媒�
Cl茅roux said the pandemic made things worse by sending many workers into early retirement and limiting immigration, noting SA国际影视传媒渢he level of immigration declined by half.SA国际影视传媒�
SA国际影视传媒淲e calculated that in Canada, weSA国际影视传媒檙e missing about 400,000 workers because of the pandemic,SA国际影视传媒� he said.
Technology SA国际影视传媒� in the form of robots, machinery and software SA国际影视传媒� is key to resolving labour shortages as they reduce the need for workers, he said.
He also said adopting a more active hiring process could be another solution for business owners.
SA国际影视传媒淵ou have to market yourself as a good employer,SA国际影视传媒� he said. SA国际影视传媒淭he level of effort has to be much greater today than it used to be before we had this shortage of labor. ItSA国际影视传媒檚 important to have a competitive total compensation package, which is much greater than just salary. People are looking for benefits. TheySA国际影视传媒檙e looking for flexible hours. TheySA国际影视传媒檙e looking sometimes to work from home. This is what you have to offer today in this market to attract people.SA国际影视传媒�
