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Statistics Canada has just released its Consumer Price Index for June that shows that prices rose 1.0% in the 12 months to June, following a 1.4% increase in May.
Energy prices rose 1.3% between June 2009 and June 2010, after increasing 6.2% over the 12 months ending in May. Excluding energy, the Consumer Price Index (CPI) advanced 0.9% in June, following a 1.0% increase in May.
The price of gasoline decreased 2.9% in June compared with the same month a year earlier, after rising 6.9% in May. This was the first year-over-year drop in prices at the pump since October 2009.
Natural gas prices increased 3.0% in June, after rising 4.7% in May. This was the third consecutive advance following several months of decline.
Electricity prices rose 5.8% in June following a 4.0% advance in May.
Prices for the purchase of passenger vehicles rose 2.8% in June, following a 5.1% increase in May.
On a seasonally adjusted monthly basis, consumer prices fell 0.2% in June, the same rate of decrease as in May. Both the transportation and the clothing and footwear indexes fell 0.7% while food prices decreased 0.1%.
Prices increased in seven of the eight major components of the CPI in the 12 months to June; the only exception was clothing and footwear.
Shelter costs rose 1.6% in the 12 months to June, after increasing 1.3% in May. Homeowner’s replacement costs rose 5.2% following a 4.4% increase in May. In addition to paying higher prices for natural gas and electricity, consumers also paid more for rent.
On the other hand, the mortgage interest cost index, which measures the change in the interest portion of payments on outstanding mortgage debt, declined 5.0% in June, following a 5.4% decrease in May.
Despite the year-over-year decline in gasoline prices, transportation costs rose 1.0% in the 12 months to June after increasing 4.1% in May. In addition to paying higher prices for the purchase of passenger vehicles, consumers also paid 5.3% more for passenger vehicle insurance premiums.
Consumers paid 1.2% more for household operations, furnishings and equipment. This increase followed a 0.9% rise in the 12 months to May. Higher prices were recorded for telephone services and child care. Costs for financial services fell 2.8%.
Food prices went up 0.7% in June following a 0.8% increase in May. The increase in June was the smallest since March 2008. Prices for food purchased from restaurants rose 1.8% while prices for food purchased from stores increased 0.1%. Prices increased for sugar and confectionery, tomatoes and lettuce, while prices for oranges and potatoes fell.
Prices in the health and personal care component were up 1.7%. Prices for oral-hygiene products and dental care increased.
In the recreation, education and reading component, prices rose 0.4% after falling 0.2% in the 12 months to May. Consumers paid more for cablevision and satellite services. However, prices for video equipment and computer equipment and supplies fell.
Prices for clothing and footwear declined 1.8%. In this component, lower prices were recorded for women’s and children’s clothing.
Apart from Manitoba, consumer prices rose in all provinces in the 12 months to June, but at a slower pace than in May. Prices at the pump fell in most provinces.
The fastest rate of change occurred in Ontario where consumer prices rose 1.6%. Prices for the purchase of passenger vehicles were up as were passenger vehicle insurance premiums. Ontario consumers also paid more for electricity and telephone services.
In Manitoba, consumer prices decreased 0.2% in the 12 months to June, following a 0.5% increase in May. Lower prices for gasoline, natural gas and home and mortgage insurance were recorded in this province.
In British Columbia, prices advanced 0.5% in June, following a 0.6% increase in May. Electricity prices rose 21.7% while prices for home and mortgage insurance declined.
The Bank of Canada’s core index advanced 1.7% in the 12 months to June, following a 1.8% rise in May. Price increases were recorded for the purchase of passenger vehicles, passenger vehicle insurance premiums, homeowner’s replacement costs, electricity and telephone services.
The seasonally adjusted monthly core index increased 0.1% in June, after increasing by the same amount in May.
For more information, or to enquire about the concepts, methods or data quality of this release, contact the Dissemination Unit (toll-free 1-866-230-2248; 613-951-9606; fax: 613-951-2848; cpd-...@statcan.gc.ca), Consumer Prices Division
Edmonton home sales are up and prices remain steady
Although there was a sales surge of home sales in the Edmonton area during February, prices didn’t raise significantly, according to the Multiple Listing Service’s (MLS) figures released last Tuesday.
While the average single-family house price was $369,573 for February, up 1.4 per cent from January, or 5.6 per cent from a year ago, condominium prices actually dropped 3.8 per cent in February to $231,530 from $240,686 and duplex and row house prices rose 3.3 per cent to $315,390.
Sales figures for February showed even more extreme monthly and yearly increases.
“While prices remained stable through February, the increase in sales activity indicates that there is a demand for housing in the Edmonton area,”
said Larry Westergard, president of the Realtors Association of Edmonton.
There were 1,184 housing sales in February — up 33.9 per cent compared to January. This number was up 7.6 per cent from a year earlier.
“The upcoming changes to mortgage qualification rules and impending mortgage rate increases may prompt some buyers to enter the market earlier and cause some additional slowdown in the third quarter,”
Westergard said.
Concerns about inventory falling short were also allayed by 2,505 residential listings added during the month for a total inventory of 5,449 homes, while the average number of days on market was 10 days down to 47.
The sales-to-listings ratio, a key indicator of market conditions, was 47 per cent, which suggests a balanced market.
Source:
The Toronto stock market advanced Monday afternoon after solid manufacturing data from the U.S. and China sent commodity prices higher.
The S&P/TSX composite index was off early highs as losses mounted in the telecom and tech sectors on the first trading day of 2010. But the main index was still ahead 76.8 points to 11,822.9 as the Institute for Supply Management’s U.S. manufacturing index rose to a better-than-expected 55.9 last month from 53.6 in November.
A figure above 50 indicates expansion and the bigger the difference, the faster the expansion.
Other data showed China’s manufacturing sector expanded at its fastest rate in 20 months in December.
The monthly purchasing managers’ index – a key gauge of activity – for the 16 countries that use the euro rose to a 21-month high of 51.6, while the equivalent survey for Britain rose to a 25-month high of 54.1.
“I think you have all the pieces,” said Kate Warne, Canadian markets specialist at Edward Jones in St. Louis.
“The news is better than expected on the economy and certainly in the U.S. and China, which are both global growth drivers. And I think that’s what everybody is watching, so we have commodities higher and no surprise the TSX is up as well.”
The Canadian dollar jumped 0.99 of a cent to 96.14 cents US – its highest level since mid-October – as the data pushed the American currency lower.
The economic reports follow an impressive end to the 2009 trading year that saw the main Toronto index up 31 per cent – its best one-year gain since 1979. The Dow Jones industrials ran ahead 19 per cent, the tech-heavy Nasdaq 44 per cent and the S&P 500 index jumped 23 per cent as investors hope a solid economic recovery is taking place.