Krista Mallory is Manager of Central Okanagan Economic Development Commission
KELOWNA – The Central Okanagan Economic Indicators for quarter one of 2022 were released recently and provide a snapshot of the Region’s economy from January to March 2022.
“The Q1 2022 Economic Indicators show a continued strong resurgence in the Central Okanagan economy with airport passengers up 270.1 per cent and job postings up 44.4 per cent compared to Q1 2021” says COEDC Manager, Krista Mallory. “Housing starts and building permit values are down compared to a 251 per cent surge in building permit values in Q1 2021 largely attributed to a rush to meet DCC grandfathering deadlines in the City of Kelowna in early 2021. Despite the decrease in Q1 2022, activity and interest in the region remain high.”
Job postings in the Central Okanagan increased 44.4 per cent in Q1 2022 compared to Q1 2021 and 65.5 per cent compared to pre-pandemic levels in Q1 2020. The largest increase was in Sales and Service occupations at 29.4 per cent. At the same time, the average number of people participating in the labour force decreased slightly by 2.7 per cent compared to 2021.
In addition the Quarterly Economic Indicators, the COEDC released 2021 Age and DwellingCensus Highlights following Statistics Canada’s latest census data release on April 27th, 2022.
In an effort to keep the public and business community informed on the economy of the region, the COEDC – the Region’s primary business resource – collates and distributes statistics of economic indicators for the Central Okanagan. The Q1 2022 Economic Indicators report provides a snapshot of the Region’s economy from January to March 2022.
The Commission sources the above third-party statistical data from BC Stats, Statistics Canada, CMHC, Vicinity Jobs, and local governments in the Central Okanagan. Caution should be used in the interpretation of month-to-month statistics, in particular the Labour Force Survey, a monthly sample survey which provides unemployment rates of the Canadian labour market.