As the loonie slowly recovers, P.E.I. looks to establish itself as a labour market
The days of Alberta having the strongest labour market are over, thanks to a crash in oil prices. The new leader in that department? Prince Edward Island. With a population of just 140,000 people, the island province has led the country in wage growth over the past year, with wages jumping 3.2 per cent—according to Statistics Canada data. In all fairness, the fact that P.E.I’s starting point is low does make it easier for the province to come out on top. At $805-per-week, P.E.I’s average earnings are about 15 per cent below the national average of $950-per-week. Though the low oil prices and low loonie are helping other provinces, like Ontario, the country’s largest grower is also its smallest province.
With Spring Break just around the corner, a lot of people will be looking to exchange their shiny loonies for some cold hard U.S. dollars. What can you do to avoid losing too [pullquote align=”left” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]…has led the country in wage growth…[/pullquote]
much with the downward dollar? Though there is not too much that can be done to avoid paying extra for American currency, there are a few things that can be done to avoid steep prices. First, try exchanging at the bank—they usually have competitive rates, and are less likely to charge you hefty fees for exchanging your currency. You can also try peer-to-peer exchange. Say you know someone who just got back from America, and they have some extra cash. Try coming to a reasonable agreement with them—but you may want to be careful with this method. Make sure that you check the exchange rate before you make the deal, or it could be a costly error. Finally, try exchanging currency online. With many companies online that offer competitive rates and simple transactions, groups like TransferWise, CanadianForex, and NorthStar may make the exchange a little less painful.
Chinese online finance company Ezubao allegedly defrauded investors out of more than US$7.6 billion, through lavish spending on gifts and salaries to bury the evidence. The operation, which local authorities are describing as a Ponzi scheme, throws a shadow over China’s online finance industry, which has been a lucrative area for many global leaders in this sector. Chinese officials are reporting that the one-time industry dynamo offered mostly fake investment products to its nearly one million investors, which is how it allegedly fleeced billions out for corporate gain. Authorities have arrested 21 people in Anhui, where Ezubao is based, and has also closed some of the platform’s operations as of Sunday.