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City of Vaughan

Economic and Investment Update – November 2022

Key Highlights

  • The Consumer Price Index (CPI) declined for a third consecutive month, dropping below seven per cent in September
  • The national unemployment rate declined slightly to 5.2 per cent in September while total size of the labour force contracted over summer months
  • Real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) increased slightly in August, rising 0.1 per cent to $2.061 trillion
  • Small Business and Entrepreneurship sees demand for consultations driven by Retail Trade, Professional, Scientific & Technical Services, and Accommodation & Food Services in October
  • Vaughan-headquartered Futurecom Systems Group acquired by Motorola Solutions
  • Vaughan-headquartered Miele Professional launches new appliance for medical instruments and devices in Canada

SELECT Economic Indicators

The Consumer Price Index (CPI) declined for a third consecutive month, dropping below seven per cent in September

The Consumer Price Index (CPI) dropped to 6.9 per cent in September, a third consecutive slowdown from a peak of 8.1 per cent in June. Ontario’s CPI also decreased, to 6.7 per cent in September. On a year-over-year basis, the prices for durable goods rose 6.7 per cent in September faster than the six per cent seen in August. The cost of purchasing a passenger vehicle was the largest contributor to this increase, up 8.4 per cent. The increase of this cost can be attributed to the ongoing shortage of semi-conductor chips which continues to impact supply chains globally.

Canadian continue to pay significantly increased costs for food in September, as prices for food purchased from stores rose again hitting 11.4 per cent, the fastest pace since August 1981. Food purchased from stores has been increasing the fastest of all items in the CPI for ten consecutive months. Causes of these increases include higher costs of production inputs like energy and fertilizer, unpredictable weather events which are linked to climate change affecting growing conditions, and continued geopolitical instability in Ukraine and Russia.

National unemployment declined slightly in September; total size of the labour force contracted over the summer months

National unemployment declined to 5.2 per cent in September, down slightly from 5.4 per cent in August. In Ontario, unemployment increased very slightly from 5.7 per cent to 5.8 per cent, while the Toronto Census Metropolitan Area (CMA) – which includes Vaughan – increased from 5.9 to 6.3 per cent in September. In the Toronto CMA, employment also decreased in September by 1.9 per cent or 66,000 jobs.

Youth unemployment in Ontario (aged 15 to 24) increased only slightly from 11.4 to 11.5 per cent, and the same slight increase was seen in unemployment for adult men (25 years and over) which rose from 4.5 to 4.6 per cent. Unemployment for adult women (25 years and over) in Ontario remained unchanged at 5.1 per cent.

In Ontario, the drop in workers in the manufacturing industry was most pronounced with a reduction of 2.4 per cent or 19,000 fewer workers. The size of the labour force, which includes those both employed and unemployed has been declining since May of this year, as has the participation rate.

Hourly wages for employees rose 5.2 per cent compared with the previous September, the fourth consecutive rise above five per cent. Despite the increase, the rise in wages still falls behind the rate of inflation (seven per cent for the same period), decreasing purchasing power for Canadians.

Women were more likely than men to have taken career or job-related decisions that prioritized childcare responsibilities despite record-high employment, according to the latest Labour Force Survey. New data focusing on parents with children under 16 became available in the latest Labour Force Survey, which showed that core-aged mothers with a child under 16 were twice as likely (14.9 per cent) to have decided not to apply for a job or a promotion over the previous year than their male counterparts. Similarly, mothers were nearly twice as likely to have turned down a job offer during the previous year due to childcare responsibilities, or 7.6 per cent compared with four per cent of fathers.

Real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) saw another slight monthly increase in August, edging up 0.1 per cent

Real Gross Domestic Product (GDP), which measures the inflation-adjusted value of goods and services produced in the economy, increased by 0.1 per cent in August.

Manufacturing had its fourth contraction in five months, edging down 0.8 per cent in August. This was led by a decrease in durable goods manufacturing. Non-durable goods manufacturing declined by 0.2 per cent in August, although food manufacturing saw a 1.5 per cent increase in the same time frame. Manufacturing accounted for $4.69 billion of economic output and employed nearly 42,000 workers in Vaughan in 2021.

Construction contracted for the fifth consecutive month, down 0.7 per cent with all subsectors experiencing declines. In 2021, the construction sector accounted for $3.94 billion of economic output and employed nearly 33,000 workers in Vaughan.

LOCAL TRENDS, INVESTMENTS, AND SUCCESS STORIES

Small Business and Entrepreneurship sees demand for consultations driven by Retail Trade, Professional, Scientific & Technical Services, and Accommodation & Food Services in October

ED’s Small Business and Entrepreneurship top five industries seeking consultations in September were:

  1. Retail Trade (29%)
  2. Professional, Scientific & Technical Services (27%)
  3. Accommodation & Food Services (23%)
  4. Other (11%)
  5. Other Services (Except Public Administration) (6%)
Vaughan-headquartered Futurecom Systems Group acquired by Motorola Solutions

Vaughan-headquartered Futurecom Systems Group, a leading provider of radio coverage extension solutions for public safety agencies, was acquired by Motorola Solutions, a global leader in public safety and enterprise security. Futurecom and Motorola have collaborated for more than thirty years on integration into Motorola’s radio networks and devices.

As both a manufacturer and wholesaler of communications solutions, Futurecom is in good company with more than 4,500 other Information and Communications Technology (ICT) in York Region, in the heart of Canada’s second-largest Tech Hub.

Vaughan-headquartered Miele Professional launches new appliance for medical instruments and devices in Canada

Vaughan-headquartered Miele, a global leader in state-of-the-art commercial-grade appliances, announced its newest solution for cleaning and disinfecting medical and surgical instruments in Canada. Miele’s PG 8582 and PG 8592 Medical Undercounter offer the ideal solution to medical instrument and device reprocessing for a range of applications, such as Ophthalmology, Ear Nose and Throat, Plastic Surgery and Obstetrics, Gynaecology and Fertility.

Miele is a player in Vaughan’s wholesale trade industry, which accounted for $2.87 billion in economic output and employed more than 14,500 workers in 2021. Vaughan’s proximity to major highways, airports, and intermodal rail and access to the complementary thriving transportation and warehousing industry make it an attractive destination of choice for wholesalers.