Ontario Economic Update
Access the December 8, 2023 update of the economy in the Ontario Economic Update, a weekly snapshot of the economy.
Economy
| Item | Monthly: 2023 Aug | Monthly: 2023 Sep | Monthly: 2023 Oct | Monthly: 2023 Nov | Quarterly: 2023 Q1 | Quarterly: 2023 Q2 | Quarterly: 2023 Q3 | Year to Date* | Annual: 2021 | Annual: 2022 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Real Gross Domestic Product ($2012 millions) | – | – | – | – | 844,252 | 845,549 | N/A | 844,900 | 874,981 | 909,121 |
| Real Gross Domestic Product (% change) | – | – | – | – | 0.8 | 0.2 | N/A | 1.5 | 5.4 | 3.9 |
| Current Dollar Gross Domestic Product ($ millions) | – | – | – | – | 1,066,869 | 1,081,013 | N/A | 1,073,941 | 960,226 | 1,048,258 |
| Current Dollar Gross Domestic Product (% change) | – | – | – | – | 1.2 | 1.3 | N/A | 3.8 | 9.8 | 9.2 |
Employment
| Item | Monthly: 2023 Aug | Monthly: 2023 Sep | Monthly: 2023 Oct | Monthly: 2023 Nov | Quarterly: 2023 Q1 | Quarterly: 2023 Q2 | Quarterly: 2023 Q3 | Year to Date | Annual: 2021 | Annual: 2022 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Employment (000's) | 7,940 | 7,960 | 7,946 | 7,952 | 7,867 | 7,922 | 7,950 | 7,916 | 7,393 | 7,732 |
| Net New Jobs (000's) | −9.0 | 19.9 | −14.3 | 6.5 | 106.3 | 54.8 | 27.9 | 189.9 | 367.4 | 338.3 |
| Net New Jobs (% change) | −0.1 | 0.3 | −0.2 | 0.1 | 1.4 | 0.7 | 0.4 | 2.5 | 5.2 | 4.6 |
| Unemployment Rate (per cent) | 5.9 | 6.0 | 6.2 | 6.1 | 5.1 | 5.4 | 5.8 | 5.7 | 8.1 | 5.6 |
| Average Weekly Wage Rate, nsa ($) | 1,288 | 1,297 | 1,297 | 1,307 | 1,254 | 1,264 | 1,288 | 1,275 | 1,162 | 1,216 |
| Average Weekly Wage Rate, nsa (% change) | 5.0 | 4.0 | 5.0 | 4.9 | 5.1 | 5.0 | 4.9 | 5.0 | 2.2 | 4.7 |
| Employment Insurance Beneficiaries (regular) | 122,750 | 122,310 | N/A | N/A | 113,370 | 119,780 | 122,190 | 127,371 | 471,822 | 138,917 |
| Employment Insurance Beneficiaries (regular) (% change) | 1.0 | −0.4 | N/A | N/A | 0.4 | 5.7 | 2.0 | −18.0 | 135.9 | −70.6 |
Consumers
| Item | Monthly: 2023 Aug | Monthly: 2023 Sep | Monthly: 2023 Oct | Monthly: 2023 Nov | Quarterly: 2023 Q1 | Quarterly: 2023 Q2 | Quarterly: 2023 Q3 | Year to Date | Annual: 2021 | Annual: 2022 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Retail Sales ($ millions) | 24,689 | 24,768 | N/A | N/A | 74,047 | 74,041 | 74,169 | 218,947 | 266,456 | 295,392 |
| Retail Sales (% change) | −0.1 | 0.3 | N/A | N/A | 0.8 | 0.0 | 0.2 | 0.3 | 9.6 | 10.9 |
| New Motor Vehicle Sales, nsa (units) | 64,755 | 67,159 | N/A | N/A | 149,955 | 202,705 | 192,029 | 544,689 | 675,000 | 634,915 |
| New Motor Vehicle Sales, nsa (% change) | 16.5 | 18.5 | N/A | N/A | 9.2 | 13.5 | 15.7 | 13.0 | 3.4 | −5.9 |
| Consumer Price Index (CPI), nsa | 159.9 | 159.7 | 160.3 | N/A | 156.5 | 158.3 | 159.7 | 158.4 | 143.2 | 152.9 |
| Consumer Price Index (CPI), nsa (% change) | 3.8 | 3.6 | 3.3 | N/A | 5.0 | 3.3 | 3.5 | 3.9 | 3.5 | 6.8 |
Housing
| Item | Monthly: 2023 Aug | Monthly: 2023 Sep | Monthly: 2023 Oct | Monthly: 2023 Nov | Quarterly: 2023 Q1 | Quarterly: 2023 Q2 | Quarterly: 2023 Q3 | Year to Date | Annual: 2021 | Annual: 2022 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Housing Starts (000's) | 84.2 | 103.7 | 102.6 | N/A | 83.4 | 101.5 | 93.6 | 74.4 | 99.6 | 96.1 |
| Housing Starts (% change) | −15.1 | 23.1 | −1.0 | N/A | −19.2 | 21.7 | −7.8 | 0.0 | 22.5 | −3.5 |
| MLS Home Resales (units) | 13,151 | 12,677 | 11,974 | N/A | 38,793 | 45,322 | 39,843 | 143,587 | 271,380 | 184,388 |
| MLS Home Resales (% change) | −6.2 | −3.6 | −5.5 | N/A | −0.7 | 16.8 | −12.1 | −13.4 | 18.8 | −32.1 |
Business
| Item | Monthly: 2023 Aug | Monthly: 2023 Sep | Monthly: 2023 Oct | Monthly: 2023 Nov | Quarterly: 2023 Q1 | Quarterly: 2023 Q2 | Quarterly: 2023 Q3 | Year to Date | Annual: 2021 | Annual: 2022 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Manufacturing Sales ($ millions) | 32,968 | 32,875 | N/A | N/A | 96,193 | 99,100 | 99,010 | 293,835 | 311,432 | 367,525 |
| Manufacturing Sales (% change) | −0.6 | −0.3 | N/A | N/A | 3.3 | 3.0 | −0.1 | 7.0 | 11.8 | 18.0 |
| International Merchandise Exports, nsa ($ millions) | 21,918 | 20,959 | 21,810 | N/A | 61,685 | 65,547 | 62,174 | 211,216 | 197,014 | 226,036 |
| International Merchandise Exports, nsa (% change) | 14.1 | 7.4 | 14 | N/A | 15.3 | 12.7 | 9.5 | 12.6 | 5.3 | 14.7 |
| International Merchandise Imports, nsa ($ millions) | 40,162 | 39,680 | 40,595 | N/A | 109,208 | 116,851 | 116,013 | 382,667 | 372,486 | 441,069 |
| International Merchandise Imports, nsa (% change) | 2.9 | 1.9 | 3.1 | N/A | 9.4 | 2.7 | 1.3 | 4.1 | 9.9 | 18.4 |
| Wholesale Trade ($ millions) | 47,403 | 47,813 | N/A | N/A | 130,182 | 138,186 | 142,255 | 408,146 | 442,870 | 490,514 |
| Wholesale Trade (% change) | 0.8 | 0.9 | N/A | N/A | 3.9 | 6.1 | 2.9 | 12.4 | 13.7 | 10.8 |
| Non-residential Building Permits ($ millions) | 2,379 | 1,707 | 1,981 | N/A | 5,720 | 5,177 | 5,855 | 18,678 | 15,998 | 18,823 |
| Non-residential Building Permits (% change) | 34.5 | −28.3 | 16.0 | N/A | 10.5 | −9.5 | 13.1 | 26.5 | 8.7 | 17.7 |
| Private and Public Investment ($ millions) | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 89,960 | 97,512 |
| Private and Public Investment (% change) | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 11.2 | 8.4 |
Notes
All monthly and quarterly data are seasonally adjusted unless otherwise specified with "nsa". Year to Date data is nsa. Per cent change for nsa data is calculated on a year-to-year basis.
Sources: Statistics Canada, Ontario Ministry of Finance, Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation and Canadian Real Estate Association.
Contact us
For further information, please contact us at:
Ministry of Finance
Economic Analysis Unit
Macroeconomics and Revenue Branch
Office of Economic Policy
6th Floor, Frost Building North
95 Grosvenor Street
Toronto ON M7A 1Z1
Updated: December 11, 2023
Published: March 27, 2022
Footnotes
- footnote[1] Back to paragraph GDP levels are expressed at annual rates.
- footnote[2] Back to paragraph Monthly and quarterly housing starts are expressed at seasonally adjusted annual rates. Year-to-date housing starts are based on actual unadjusted urban-area data.
- footnote[3] Back to paragraph International merchandise trade is reported on a customs basis.