Fall 2012 Challenges Assignment

This is a article about a new hybrid car, that should work in favor with the spiking of the oil prices.

This article talks about how the government is doing very good with reducing the inequality with the tax cuts and all but that they could be more aggressive. It's suggesting that we need a new redistribution plan but mainly focuses on what it counts to be the most important thing in getting rid of the debt, the governments role in all this. Asks questions like what if the government had made different decisions. 

It seems that while the economy can help consumers in addressing their debt problems, it can be very unstable. Because of this, every debtor and Canadian consumer must take action themselves to ensure that their debts stay within their control. Average consumer debt reaches $26,221

From 84% in 1990 to 164.6% today - it's an alarming leap, a dramatic number that may actually have scared some of us into doing something about our debt load. Someone with a $300,000 mortgage and after-tax household income of $100,000, for example, really shouldn't be in a full-fledged panic because they have a debt-to-income ratio of 300%. That's a normal scenario in today's market and not cause for alarm by itself. Still more relevant to consider might be your debt servicing costs and then what they would be if interest rates went up two percentage points. On average, Canadian households pay about 7.6% of their after-tax income on interest payments. That number was 8.8% in 2000 and consumers were able to handle the load, says Mr. Tal

The article mentions about how auto loans have increased substantially in the past few years and that this may be because auto loans have lower interest rates. But it also mentions that the economy is recovering and another hit could affect us because we are borrowing so much. 

Canadian debt loads grew at their fastest pace in two years during the summer

Non-mortgage debt jumped 4.6 per cent

Household market debt has risen to 163% of disposable income

For every dollar of after-tax income Canadians bring home, they're borrowing more than $1.64. Statistics Canada said that between July and September of this year, households borrowed $27.3 billion Consumer credit levels increased by $7 billion to $474 billion.

For every dollar of after-tax income Canadians bring home, they're borrowing more than $1.64. Statistics Canada said that between July and September of this year, households borrowed $27.3 billion Consumer credit levels increased by $7 billion to $474 billion.

Canadian spending rose by 3.45 per cent during the fourth quarter of 2012 October 2012 experienced the strongest growth, with a 4.93 per cent increase in spending, Boxing Week spending was up 5.35 per cent, compared to 2011

The Canadian economy created 40,000 jobs in December -- all of it in full-time work -- and drove the unemployment rate to its lowest in four years, Statistics Canada said Friday. The federal agency said the national unemployment rate slipped by one-tenth of a percentage point to 7.1 per cent, its lowest level since December 2008 Statistics Canada reported last month that the economy grew just 0.1 per cent in October after a flat reading in September and a 0.1 per cent contraction in August. Compared with a year earlier, Statistics Canada said there were 312,000 more jobs, all in full-time work.

In contrast to the financial woes of many countries, the Canadian economy has seen growth in a number of sectors, with thousands of jobs added in recent months. Immigration to Canada is expected to play a key part in expanding the country's population and financial wealth for years to come. Canada's upward trend of economic growth and job creation are good news for those looking to live and work in the country. Certain fields are in particular need of employees. At present, the most notable labour market shortages can be found in the realms of construction and natural resource management.

Some 6.4 per cent of Canada's total workforce-1.2 million people-now consists of part-time workers under 30 who wish they could work full time. university-educated Canadians experienced a relative increase in unemployment between 1997 and 2005 and a corresponding dip in relative wages, according to a federal government study. By contrast, those with a college, or even a high school education, managed to improve (or at least maintain) their outlook, relative to other workers. In fact, the only group that experienced a similar relative increase in unemployment during the period were those Canadians without even a high school diploma. Employers increasingly expect workers to pay for their own retirements. That's not easy when you don't have money. A survey by the Bank of Montreal found that only about 10 per cent of Canadians aged 18 to 34 had given any thought to retirement planning. Job security is also increasingly scarce. Stung by the 2009 recession, employers in industries ranging from retail sales to information technology are preoccupied with building a flexible workforce In an effort to close the gap, the federal government is planning to bring in as many as 3,000 foreign skilled workers this year by De-emphasizing the university-educated and focusing instead on welders and electricians. Economists say the market will eventually sort itself out. Wages and benefits in the trades should become more attractive as desperate employers try to woo new workers.

Since the recession began in October 2008, only 179,000 jobs have been created. (In recent months 37,000 jobs have actually disappeared) 541,000 workers who have exited Canada's work force since the recession began. Roughly 700,000 seniors would suffer reduced incomes. The number of seniors below the poverty line would increase from 50,000 to 220,000- representing a more than doubling of Canada's poverty rate. Thirdly, past cuts to Canada's Employment Insurance (EI) program mean that only 39% of the officially unemployed are eligible to receive benefits. Another 860,140 unemployed people are barred from EI benefits and have to rely on provincial welfare or their families.

From the mid 1990's - late 2000's Canada had the fourth largest increase in income inequality among it's peers. Income inequality, along with corruption, were named as the two most serious challenges facing the world at this year's World Economic Forum in Davos. the impact of the growing income gap has gather little attention in Canada market forces and globalization are increasing disparity, along with institutional shifts such as dwindling unionization rates and stagnating minimum wages.

The average income that families in the bottom 20 per cent make from employment has decreased by 60 per cent since 1980, whereas the average earnings in the top 10 per cent has grown by 45 per cent. Using data from 23 countries, British economist Richard Wilkinson has linked inequality to 10 social indicators like life expectancy, teenage births, obesity, homicides, imprisonment and infant mortality rates.

Most of the income gains of the past three decades, the report argues, were realized by only wealthy Canadians. The paper suggests that social and economic rights be added to the Charter of Rights and Freedoms alongside Canadians' political and civil rights, in order to fulfil its "security of the person" provision. For every dollar increase in national earnings over the last 20 years more than 30 cents have gone to the top one per cent while the remaining 70 cents have been shared across the other 99 per cent of Canadians. The final section of the report is prescriptive, outlining several ways to combat growing income equality: -Good jobs: changes to economic policies to promote the growth of middle-class jobs, including trade and foreign investment policies that protect labour rights and environmental standards and strong investments in child care, public education and skills training. -Income supports: changes to the government programs targeted at low-income Canadians and those in short-term need, such as employment insurance, Old Age Security, the Canada Pension Plan, provincial welfare systems and other income supports and tax benefits targeted at low-income families with children and the working poor. -Expanding public services: the report argues that for the majority of Canadians public services are a good deal; The value of education, health care, child care and other public services annually exceeds the taxes paid by middle-class and low-income Canadians. At the same time, some reforms are needed, it acknowledges. -Fair taxes: changes to Canada's tax system are necessary, it argues, pointing out Canada's taxes as a share of national income (31 per cent) are below the average of the world's industrialized countries (34 per cent), squeezing funding for public services.