April 2020 year-to-date retail trade was down by -7.9% over the same period in 2019.

• Sub-sectors that posted increases were: Health and personal care stores (9.4%), Grocery stores (7.0%), and Beer, wine and liquor stores (9.7%).
• Sub-sectors that posted declines were: New car dealers (-20.0%), Used car dealers (-24.3%), Gasoline stations (-13.2%), Furniture and home furnishings stores (-12.6%), Electronics and appliance stores (-9.4%), Building material and garden equipment and supplies dealers (-6.9%), Clothing and clothing accessories stores (-38.4%), Sporting goods, hobby, book and music stores (-37.2%), General merchandise stores (-0.5%), and All other (-10.3%).

April 2020 year-to-date new motor vehicle sales were down -28.3% from April 2019. New minivans, sport-utility vehicles, light and heavy trucks, vans and buses sales were down -25.9%, while new passenger cars sales were also down -44.9%.    

April 2020 year-to-date restaurant receipts were down -24.6% over the same period in 2019. Declines were noted in Special food services (-16.1%), Drinking places (alcoholic beverages) (-35.8%), Full-service restaurants (-34.8%), and Limited-service eating places (-9.8%).

April 2020 year-to-date manufacturing sales are down by -16.7% over the same period in 2019.

• Sub-sectors that posted increases were: Machinery manufacturing sales (4.0%) and fabricated metal product manufacturing sales (9.9%).
• Sub-sectors that posted decreases were: Food manufacturing sales (-18.5%) and All other Manufacturing sales (-20.7%).

April 2020 year-to-date wholesale trade was down by -5.9% over the same period in 2019.

• Sub-sectors that posted increases was limited to: Farm product merchant wholesalers (2.4%).
• Sub-sectors that posted declines were: Food, beverage and tobacco merchant wholesalers (-7.1%), Machinery, equipment and supplies merchant wholesalers (-10.5%), Building material and supplies merchant wholesalers (-6.2%), and All other (-3.9%).

Total International merchandise exports were down 4.3% May 2020 year-to-date.

• Sub-sectors that posted increases were: Farm, fishing and intermediate food products (18.6%), Industrial machinery, equipment and parts (6.7%), Electronic and electrical equipment and parts (17.2%), and Motor vehicles and parts (3.7%).
• Sub-sectors that posted decreases were: Energy products (-31.1%), Metal ores and non-metallic minerals (-13.9%), Metal and non-metallic mineral products (-69.9%), Basic and industrial chemical, plastic and rubber products (-20.5%), Forestry products and building and packaging materials (-11.7%), Aircraft and other transportation equipment and parts (-66.5%), Consumer goods (-3.1%), and Special transactions (-13.4%).

With weak housing and residential building permit activity, construction employment declined throughout 2019. In the first 6 months of 2020, this trend continued, despite signs of life in residential housing starts. Year-to-date June construction employment was down by 7,000 positions or 15.5% from the same period in 2019.

Recovering from an exceptionally soft 2019, June 2020 total year-to-date housing starts were up by 194 units or 23.3%.

• Year-to-date increases were observed in: apartment and other types (233 units or 109.9%).
• Year-to-date declines were noted in: singles (-9 units or -2.1%), semi-detached (-19 units or -26.4%), and row (-11 units or -8.6%).

May 2020 year-to-date building permits were down -27.9% over the same period in 2019.

• Sub-sectors that posted increases were limited to: residential (1.2%).
• Sub-sectors that posted declines were: industrial (-47.4%), commercial (-36.2%), and institutional and governmental (-70.2%). 

June 2020 year-to-date employment in Information, culture and recreation was down 1,750 positions or 8.4% over the same period in 2019.

April 2020 year-to-date average weekly earnings in Information and cultural industries was up 4.6%.

2020 Q2 Provincial population was up 0.9% over 2019 Q2 to an all-time high of 1,181,987 on the strength of a 3,000 person surge in international in-migration.

In 3 dramatic rate cuts on March 4th, March 13th, and March 27th, the Bank of Canada cut its benchmark interest rate to 0.25%. The Central Bank initially cut its rate to 1.25% at a previously scheduled meeting on March 4th to help counteract the impact of COVID-19. The unscheduled rate decisions on March 13th and 27th shaved a further percentage point from the rate as a proactive measure to boost the economy amid pandemic fears.

In its pre-pandemic Winter 2020 forecast, the Conference Board of Canada's forecast for 2020 was for 1% growth in real GDP and 1.7% in 2021. In its Spring 2020 forecast, accounting for pandemic impacts, the Conference Board now predicts a 5% decline in the province's GDP in 2020, with employment in the province expected to fall by 2.8%. The report expects both GDP and employment to rebound in 2021, by 5.4% and 2.9%, respectively.