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View Full Version : Nova Scotia's economic growth slightly improved, says RBC Economics



skyscraper_1
Oct 24, 2007, 5:36 PM
TORONTO, Oct. 12 /CNW/ - According to a provincial forecast released
today by RBC, Nova Scotia's economic growth is expected to increase slightly
to a still below-average rate of 2.4 per cent in 2007 and 3.1 per cent in
2008.
"Supported by healthier labour markets, decent wage growth and an
expanding service sector, Nova Scotia's economic growth is up slightly from
last year's tepid pace," said Craig Wright, vice-president and chief
economist, RBC. "A strong performance from the province's goods sector has
helped boost the economy and offset the manufacturing, forestry and
construction sectors which remain soft."
RBC noted housing markets are still strong with average house price
growth tracking at an eight per cent pace this year. Anticipated weakness in
non-residential construction this year stems from a temporary lack of
mega-projects.
The Keltic Petrochemical plant, which begins construction next year,
should provide a boost to the economy. The Deep Panuke project appears on
track to begin construction in 2008 and production in 2010, when it is
expected to have the capacity to ship up to 300 million cubic feet of natural
gas per day. If both the Deep Panuke and Keltic Petrochemical plants commence
construction in the latter part of the decade they will be a boon to the
province's construction sector. Together these projects present significant
upside prospects for economic growth.
Across the provinces, Newfoundland and Labrador is expected to be the
growth leader this year, with Alberta moving into the lead in 2008, rivaled
only by Saskatchewan. Manitoba's steady growth and inflation rates will keep
it in the middle of the western provincial pack, and B.C.'s growth rate will
move slightly downward. RBC's forecast for Ontario's economy has been revised
downward to the bottom of the pack among all the provinces. Quebec should fare
somewhat better than Ontario next year, until currency depreciation, lower
energy prices, improvements in the U.S. economy, and capital spending lift
central Canada's manufacturers and exporters. While P.E.I.'s growth prospects
are modest, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick are well-positioned for better
long-run growth as a result of renewed prospects for several large-scale
capital projects.
The RBC Economics Provincial Outlook assesses the provinces according to
economic growth, employment growth, unemployment rates, personal income
growth, retail sales, housing starts and the Consumer Price Index.
According to the report (available online as of 8 a.m. E.D.T., at
www.rbc.com/economics/market/pdf/provfcst.pdf), provincial forecast details
are as follows:

http://www.newswire.ca/en/releases/archive/October2007/12/c3209.html

If you look at the bottom of the article you can see the estimate for 09 and it stands at 3.5%, likely due to the Keltic project. :)

skyscraper_1
Oct 26, 2007, 2:08 AM
More from the RBC
Nova Scotia
.........................................02 .03 .04 ..05..06..07..08. 09
Real GDP Growth(%): 4.0 1.1 0.8 1.6 1.1 2.4 3.1 3.5


......................................02 ...03.. .04 ...05...06...07...08...09
Unemployment rate / 9.6 / 9.1 / 8.8 / 8.4 / 7.9/ 8.0 / 7.2 / 6.8/

So in spite of the fact that N.S. is predicted to add 30,000 people to its labour force(between 2002-2009), the unemployment rate will drop by almost 3 percent points...a rate lower then Ontario and Quebec. I say that is something to celebrate!

Halifax Hillbilly
Oct 26, 2007, 11:58 AM
This province is doing ok despite Rodney! Who would have thunk it.

Deep Panuke's a go so that's good news, but does Keltic have a gas supply yet?

skyscraper_1
Oct 26, 2007, 1:32 PM
"Keltic Petrochemicals Inc. is proposing to develop, construct, and operate a world-scale petrochemical plant in Goldboro, Nova Scotia. When completed, the facility will consist of an ethylene, polyethylene, propylene and polypropylene plants as well as a supporting cogeneration plant and a receiving terminal for liquefied natural gas (LNG). The petrochemical complex will be the first of its kind in Atlantic Canada. Keltic will extract the ethane and the propane from the both LNG and natural gas that comes on shore at Goldboro. "

So they should already have access to Sable gas, but I am not sure about the LNG portion though.

The highlights of the Keltic Petrochemical plans include:

* 3,000 jobs at peak construction with most lasting about 36 months
* Total construction employment spending will reach $1.4 billion
* During operations, 500 - 600 permanent full-time jobs will be created with an annual payroll of approximately $35 - $36 million
* Marine based jobs include vessel captains, mates, and crew for:
o 4 Harbour Tugs
o Pilot Boat
o 3 Vessels (25,000 tons capacity per) transporting plastic pellets to market
o Miscellaneous vessels to transport off-gas and refinery grade propane

Huge(!!!) project for Guysborough County. There is also the planned Strait super terminal.

Halifax Hillbilly
Oct 27, 2007, 1:05 PM
Huge(!!!) project for Guysborough County. There is also the planned Strait super terminal.

I don't think they've got a gas supply for Keltic which is why I asked, I haven't followed it very closely.

Strait super terminal? Do you mean the LNG terminal because that fell through. There has been talk of a post-panamax container terminal.