News Impacting Business In British Columbia
BC Housing Markets Strong First Quarter
BRITISH COLUMBIA – The British Columbia Real Estate Association (BCREA) reports that a total of 11,463 residential unit sales were recorded by the Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®) in March 2022, a decrease of 24.1 per cent from a record March 2021.
The average MLS® residential price in BC was $1.096 million, a 15.7 per cent increase from $946,813 recorded in March 2021. Total sales dollar volume was $12.6 billion, a 12.1 per cent decline from the same time last year
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Poll Shows Canadians Recognize the Benefits of Forestry
BRITISH COLUMBIA – A public opinion survey conducted by Abacus Data shows that Canadians are gaining a better appreciation for Canada’s forest industry and the contributions of its workers. At the same time, the poll results also demonstrate the sector needs to continue to inform Canadians about the positive role it plays in sustainably managing the land base, mitigating climate change, and helping Canada transition to a cleaner and greener economy.
Forest Products Association of Canada (FPAC) commissioned Abacus Data to conduct a national public opinion survey to understand the level of knowledge and opinions of Canadians about their forest sector. The survey mirrored polling that was conducted in 2020 and 2021, with results demonstrating that the awareness and impression of forestry are both improving. The positive impression among Canadians was up 8 points compared to 2021, and up 14 points over 2020.
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BC Businesses Benefit From Intellectual Property Partnership
BRITISH COLUMBIA – Business owners and entrepreneurs in B.C. will have better access to intellectual property (IP) resources to protect and develop their ideas through a new partnership.
A new partnership between the Province, Innovation Asset Collective (IAC) and Innovate BC is part of a national IP strategy to help Canadian businesses maximize the potential of their ideas and products. This partnership aligns with the goals in the StrongerBC Economic Plan to strengthen innovation and provide British Columbians with better access to resources to help keep ownership of intangible assets.
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BC Mineral And Coal Exploration Expenditure Sets Records In 2021
BRITISH COLUMBIA -The latest British Columbia Mineral and Coal Exploration Survey finds exploration spending across the province totalled $660m in 2021, achieving a record high since spending peaked in 2012 at $681m. The total number of exploration projects and expenditure per project were also up 16% and 34%, respectively. This uptick was consistent nationally, as Canada’s exploration expenditure saw the highest growth and attracted the largest share of global budgets with an increase of 62%, ahead of both Australia and the US.
“Despite difficulties from forest fires and infrastructure disruptions from flooding, favourable market conditions helped the local exploration industry to propel forward and secure a record-setting year,” explains Iain Thompson, EY Canada Mining & Metals Consulting Leader.
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Seaspan Shipyards Launches Immersive Visualization Platform
VICTORIA – Seaspan Shipyards (Seaspan) has launched its new HoloShip facility, an immersive visualization system that enables Seaspan and the Canadian marine industry community to access a virtual reality environment to develop, integrate, test and demonstrate new digital twin capabilities and transform how ships are built, constructed, and maintained.
Modern shipbuilding and through-life support are rapidly evolving with integrated use of digital technology and digital twins. Effective use of digital information is critical for shipbuilders and ship owners/operators and forms the foundation for connected products and services that can result in more efficient, safer and sustainable fleets.
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