Metro St. John’s GDP, housing starts, retail trade and immigration climb slightly

Economic growth in the

St. John’s region this year shouldn’t change much from last year.

According to the St. John’s Census Metropolitan Area report, a Statistics Canada geographically defined area including St. John’s and neighbouring communities, oil production gains in 2018 will cause a nominal real gross domestic product (GDP) increase of .7 per cent. “Household income and retail trade are expected to grow slightly throughout 2018,” St. John’s Mayor Danny Breen stated in a news release. “However, we do see the economic slowdown being reflected in the labour market data as employment is expected to decline 1.3 per cent in line with decreasing major project investment.” Also rising slightly this year are housing starts (765 units), retail trade (.4 per cent) and, thanks to historically high levels of international immigration, the population should also climb (.6 per cent).

The unemployment rate, meanwhile, is anticipated to drop by .5 per cent.

The data is prepared by the provincial government’s Department of Finance and the city’s department of community services.