A prominent Ottawa business expert is predicting a wave of bankruptcies in the coming months as Canada’s central bank raises its benchmark interest rate in a bid to put the brakes on inflation.
Statistics Canada says wholesale sales rose 4.2 per cent in January to $79.8 billion, helped by gains in sales of building material and supplies, personal and household goods, and machinery, equipment and supplies.
The average price in the nation’s capital last month was $730,300, according to the Canadian Real Estate Association, up from $630,000 in February 2021.
The merger of two of Ottawa's largest office furniture dealers was triggered by furniture maker Herman Miller’s $1.8-billion acquisition last summer of another leading global manufacturer, Knoll.
Builders started work on 877 new dwellings in February, a 16 per cent increase over the 754 starts recorded in the same month in 2021, housing agency says.
In Eastern Ontario, there are players that are on the leading edge in manufacturing sophistication and innovation. A new cohort of manufacturing workers is rising.
Statistics Canada says manufacturing sales rose 0.6 per cent to $64.8 billion in January, as higher prices helped boost sales in the petroleum and coal sector to a record high and lift wood product sales higher.