Economic Review 2017

Thursday, February 08, 2018 - 9:00 AM

Economic Review 2017 reports that economic performance in the St. John’s Census Metropolitan Area (CMA) was subdued in 2017. Labour and housing markets exhibited considerable weakness, while real gross domestic product (GDP) is estimated to have declined slightly.

“Real GDP is estimated to have declined by 0.9 per cent, however growth in household income and retail trade was modest,” says Deputy Mayor O’Leary, Council Lead for Economic Development, Tourism and Culture. “We are seeing the effect of the economic slowdown in areas like housing and unemployment. There was a decline in housing starts last year to 763 units, and the unemployment rate increased to 8.4 per cent.” 

Household income increased by 1.2 per cent, the lowest rate of growth in this indicator since 1997. Similarly, retail sales experienced slow growth with an increase of 0.5 per cent.

In 2017, employment in the St. John’s CMA decreased by 5.6 per cent (or 6,500 persons), and the labour force declined by 5 per cent leading to the unemployment rate increasing by 0.6 percentage points. The Consumer Price Index (CPI), which is an indicator of the rate of inflation, increased by 2.5%.

Outlook for 2018
“The outlook for 2018 continues to be challenging,” said Mayor Danny Breen. “As some major projects like Hebron and Long Harbour are completed and there is expected to be a decline in capital investment.”

Note: The St. John’s Census Metropolitan Area (CMA) is a Statistics Canada geographically defined area including St. John’s and neighbouring communities. Data prepared by Government of Newfoundland and Labrador, Department of Finance (Economic Research and Analysis Division) and the City of St. John’s.
 
Media Contact:
Kelly Maguire
Media Relations
City of St. John's
709-576-8491
kmaguire@stjohns.ca