Chapter 8

http://www.cic.gc.ca/English/department/media/releases/2008/2008-03-14.asp

Summary:

            According to the data released by Citizenship and Immigration Canada, last year, we accepted the highest number of immigrants in history.  Canada admitted about 230,000 permanent residents, temporary workers and foreign students.  According to Census, Canada’s population grew by 1.6 million, with 1.1 million being immigrants.  There’s a 12% increase in temporary foreign workers and a 4.6% increase in foreign students.  The Minister of Citizenship and Immigration, Diane Finley said that the high number of immigration into Canada is due to our growing economic needs, since there’s a shortage in labour everywhere in Canada.

Relation to Chapter 8:

            In chapter 8, we learned that immigration is very important to our economy.  Since Canada has a low population, we need a lot of immigrants to fill the gaps.  Many workers with needed skills are allowed into Canada to help match the supply of labour with demand.  Because of our small population, immigration becomes very important to support Canada’s growth.   Immigrants are also needed for underpopulated areas and places that are short of needed human resources to reduce geographic dimension of structural unemployment.  We also learned in chapter 8 that for someone to migrate to Canada, they must score at least 75 points based on education, work experience, arranged employment, age, knowledge of English and French, and Adaptability.

Personal Reflection:

            I also feel that immigration is very important to Canada’s growing economy.  Even though immigrants are admitted because of economic needs, a lot of times, they’re admitted to help reunite the family, and most of these immigrants are old and unable to participate in the work force.  Also, a lot of times, these new immigrants can’t adapt to the working conditions in Canada, especially if they don’t speak English or French.  Many employers refuse to hire immigrants who can’t speak English or French even though they are fully capable for the job and many of these immigrants are forced to look for other jobs that may not be in their style.

Article: http://www.bankofcanada.ca/en/press/2008/pr08-8.html

Summary:

Recently, a bunch of $100 counterfeit bank notes have been released to the public in the greater Toronto area.  The Bank of Canada and the police force are reminding people to always check their money before taking them in.  According to the article, if you actually check the counterfeit bank notes, you can easily tell that they’re fakes.  Statistics say that counterfeiting rates have decreased by over 75% since 2004, but we should always check our money or else it would increase again.

Relation to Chapter 7:

            In chapter 7, we talked about why bank notes are created and the characteristics of bank notes that make them a good currency.  One of them is of course, that they’re not easily copied.  Counterfeit may look like normal money on the outside, but once you check the money, you can easily tell that they’re fakes.  The Bank of Canada is always trying to develop new methods to add security to the bank notes and to make it last longer.  Paper currency is actually very effective.  Its face value is greater than its actual value; it’s recognizable and readily accepted; it’s durable, portable, and divisible.  If the Bank of Canada can think of ways to make it harder to copy, then paper money would fully meet all 6 characteristics of money.

My Opinion:

            Personally, I don’t think that these counterfeit bills will cause too much problem.  People tend to check bills with greater value like the hundreds compared to the fives and tens.  Even at the place I work in, the managers always tell us to check any $20 or greater bills no matter how much they look like real money.  People just need to develop a habit of checking bills before they take them in.

http://www.bankofcanada.ca/en/banknotes/

            The link above teaches us how to check the bills properly.

Chapter 6

Article: http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080410/bs_nm/usa_economy_outlook_dc;_ylt=ApCcDemyH4NiYuVppa96P3rv5rEF

Summary:

            Based on the Blue Chip Economic Indicators Survey, US have already or will soon slip into a recession.  Experts say that the recession will not be deep or last a long time.  The survey showed that excluding April, there has been a decline in jobs for the past three months, and the growth in gross domestic products have dropped 0.2% compared to last month.  Researchers say that the recession will result in a weaker job market and a higher inflation, which will result in a growth in real disposable personal income in 2008.  Even though the US economy is in recession, most say that the recession will end by 2009 and the spending will rebound.

Relations to Chapter 6:

            In chapter 6, we talked about recessions and the paradox of thrift.  The reason why US is entering in a recession is because the consumer spending is slowing down, meaning that people are saving more.  The paradox of thrift applies here because even though most think that if everyone saves more money, they will end up with more money, but it will actually result in a lower level of equilibrium RGDP, so people may end up with less money.  The government should take in account of Keynes’s theories and take action to help boost the economy by putting more money on businesses.

My opinion

            There’s no doubt that US is entering a recession.  I’m a bit concerned that Canada may be affected by this because our economy is so closely tied with US’s, and also because signs of inflation are starting to show.  But even if Canada and/or U.S. enter into a recession, I don’t think it will cause too much problem as long as the government take action as soon as possible so we won’t fall into a depression.  Both Canada and US’s economies are quite stable, so I’m not going to worry about it.

Chapter 5
Article: http://www.fraserinstitute.org/COMMERCE.WEB/article_details.aspx?pubID=3478

Summary

            David Baxter, and the people who studied the issue with him, think that since the immigration rates are falling, we would face a labor shortage problem.  Many people, like the Conference Board of Canada, Canadian demographers, and the BC Business Council, all disagree with him.  They say that not only will Canada not face a labor shortage, since there’s an increase in participation rate and the population is also growing steadily, it might be a problem to find work for the huge amount of people entering the work force.  Even construction, which should be the major sector that lacks employees, doesn’t seem to face much problem.

Relation to Chap. 5

            Chapter 5 talks about the economic indicators, and the article talks about how the immigration rate might lower the amount of people available for jobs, which will affect the economy.  We learned that to calculate the participation rate, we have to divide the labor force by the population.  It’s shown by research that the participation rate in Canada is increasing, so we probably shouldn’t be facing a labor shortage.  David Baxter probably looked at all the economic indicators like employment and unemployment rates, inflations, etc to come to a conclusion that we will face a labor shortage.

My Opinions

            I don’t think Canada will face a labor shortage.  I’m not sure about other provinces, but in Vancouver, there seem to be a lack of jobs because I always hear people complaining about how they can’t find a job.  In general, there doesn’t seem to be a shortage in employees.  I also don’t agree with David Baxter about how “we didn’t have immigration, we’d stop regenerating our labor force in about four years”.  I don’t think that immigration is the only factor that would determine the size of our labor force.  And a high immigration rate is not exactly good for the economy either because immigrants tend to be getting lower paying jobs and it might also create a shortage of jobs.

Chapter 4

News Article

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601082&sid=aEg6jS1nF5Z0&refer=canada

Summary

            British Columbia is thinking of imposing a tax on fossil fuels to both businesses and individuals to cut our greenhouse gas emissions by a third by 2020.  If approved, the tax will start on July 1 and the B.C. Ministry of Finance assumed it will generate about $1.85 billion for government revenue in the next 3 years.  The tax is said to begin at a low rate and slowly then gradually increase.  The government will provide tax credits for people with lower incomes and cuts in income tax rates.  B.C. Finance Minister believe that by imposing a tax on fossil fuels, it will discourage their use, and people will have more money left over from it, so the people have control on how much tax they would pay.  The plan will not start until it’s been approved and right now, Canada’s Environmental Minister has rejected the offer.

Relation to Chap. 4

            If the government allow this tax to pass, it’s most likely that the tax would be governed at a provincial level.  This tax could service our country in several ways.  The most obvious one would be the effect it would have on greenhouse gas emissions.  This tax could decrease the amount of fossil fuels emitted or convince people to use fuel saving appliances.  Another advantage of the tax would be the amount of money the government receives from this tax to pay for our social services or to pay off debt.  People with lower income can use tax credits (a deduction in the tax paid) to help pay for it.

My opinion

            I think that having this tax is a good idea.  The tax will only affect those who use a lot of fossil fuels, so the amount of tax a person pays does depend on how much greenhouse gases they emit.   I do believe that this tax will have a much greater impact on businesses than individuals, but perhaps this will help people find ways to use fuel saving equipments and to reuse the fuels.  Global warming is the #1 environmental concern and we should start taking action to help stop it before it’s too late.

news article: http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/news/business/story.html?id=5314b8d9-336d-4e59-afbc-c5ee3ac6dc66&k=35935