Canadian Personal Finance Blog

Jim Flaherty came through with an interesting and I would say very optimistic Economic Update (mini-budget, whatever), yesterday that took aim at something that all voters love to see under financial siege, Government Agencies and MP’s. 

No Debt Financing?

With some very creative and optimistic accounting the Finance Minister is promising to try to have either balanced budgets or very small surpluses up to 2013, which is very contrary to what most economists are saying is possible in the current economic instability (i.e. Financial Apocalypse). 

Flaherty did couch his optimism with the following cold statement:

“Any additional actions to support the economy will have an impact on the bottom-line numbers in our next budget. These actions, or a further deterioration in global economic conditions, could result in a deficit.”

So he isn’t saying there isn’t going to be deficits, just that there will be measures taken to avoid a deficit if possible.

Take that Ottawa Fat Cats

Not Really an Ottawa Fat Cat

No that is not a real Ottawa fat cat, it’s my cat from when I lived in Kitchener, but he is a good Metaphor for the “Fat Cats” in Ottawa.

Some of the measures against the “Ottawa Fat Cats” taken will be:

• Elimination of the $1.75 per vote allowance to support political parties that receive more than 2 per cent of the vote, staring April 2009. I really like this one, because all of the politicians are howling about it, so it must be a good thing. 
• Wage controls holding increases to public servants, including MPs and senators, to 2.3 per cent for last year and 1.5 per cent for each of the next three years. I really like this one, because the MP’s are mad about this as well, and the public service doesn’t like it either.
• Slash cost overruns on government travel, hospitality, conferences, exchanges and political services, this sounds like something they should have been doing already? What exactly were they doing before this, wait, I don’t want to know the answer to that one, so please don’t answer.
• Provincial equalization payments are gauged to the average GDP growth over a three-year period. Can’t wait to hear Dalton McGuinty tirade about this one.
• No mention of any extra taxes, but since this is not a budget, then I guess nothing has to be mentioned about that (yet).

Some pro-active steps being taken are:

• Giving $350 million in equity into the Export Development Canada and another $350 million in equity into the Business Development Bank of Canada. Interesting, guess I should send my resume in there since they might be hiring soon.
• A scary one for soon to be pensioners is allowing federally regulated pension plans to spend 10 years instead of five to make solvency payments if necessary. This is a slippery slope I think and it could end up like some of the private pensions that are woefully underfunded these days.
• Only allowing seniors to withdraw $7,500 instead of $10,000 from their Registered Retirement Income Funds (RRIFs), which is supposed to slow the cashing in of stocks and mutual funds I guess. 

Good Graphic to Show Canada is Doing Better than Most:

Canada Doing Not Bad with Debt

Eight two cents a Litre for Gasoline in Ottawa

Last night I was astounded and thought, “What a difference six months makes”, when I filled up my van with 50 litres of gasoline and it cost me $41.00 . Six months ago that exact same amount would have cost me over $60.00 . The dramatic drop in the price of gasoline in the past few weeks has been astounding and now I wonder whether this is the anomaly or whether what happened in the past year with the price spike is the anomaly. My guess is gasoline prices are going to be manipulated a great deal over the next 10 years and we will all be paying for it.

Remember to check gas prices in Ottawa at Ottawa Gas Prices.

I am not sure what the price of fuel is in Toronto, however, if I make a round trip there, these prices could mean a savings of over $70.00, which is significant, and shocking.

I am now very curious to see what the Consumer Price Index will reflect with this price drop, in the next month or two. What will this deflationary drop of a major consumable do to prices? What will it do to all of those new projects in the Resource Industries, now that gas is cheap? What was the break even price for extracting gas from the tar sands again?

It was Oil Prices All Along

More interestingly there was an article this week that blames sky rocketing oil prices for the economic collapse (in the Financial Post). Jeffrey Rubin from a Chief Economist at the CIBC stated:

“By any benchmark the economic cost of the recent rise in oil prices is nothing short of staggering, a lot more staggering than the impact of plunging housing prices on housing starts and construction jobs. And those energy costs, unlike the massive asset writedowns associated with the housing market crash, were borne largely by Main Street, not Wall Street, in both America and throughout the world.”

Other economists disagree like Frank Atkins from the University of Calgary who said:

“The inconsistency in his story is that he had oil prices going to US$200 and the TSX going over 15,000,” Mr. Atkins said. “He did not have in his original speech oil prices destroying the economy.”

I think I agree with Mr. Rubin somewhat, but I think the housing collapse in the U.S. helped out as much as oil prices to create a “Perfect Economic Apocalyptic Melt Down”.

Congrats President Obama

Interesting results in the Presidential race in America the question most Canadians are going to ask is, is he really going to re-open the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA)? I really hope not, unless it would be to make trade even fee-er. In these interesting economic times, I would think the last thing anyone wants to do is restrict trade in any direction, but then again, if it somehow appears to create American jobs, that may be exactly what happens.

Quebec Election Cometh

Just when you get bored with politics, Quebec his about to announce another election, and will the Separatism Leviathan appear to scare the rest of Canada? Who knows, but if Quebec politics is one thing, it is most certainly not boring! Stay tuned this could get interesting again folks.

Ontario a Have Not Province

For the first time ever Ontario will be receiving equalization payments from the Federal Government and everyone is having a good laugh about it. The more interesting part of the equation is that Newfoundland and Labrador are now a “Have” province, and will be paying into the system more. This certainly is a changing financial landscape here in Canada.

Carnivals

• Living Almost Large is hosting the 37th Carnival of Money Hacks where my post I Should Divorce My Wife is mentioned.

When I was growing up in Montreal I had my bicycle stolen straight out of my family’s garage, and I remember my Dad giving me some money to go get a new one. It was traumatic for me, since I had never had anything of my own stolen, and suddenly my bicycle (my only means of transport) was taken, it was quite upsetting.

From that day onward I closed any garage I was associated with and became a Nazi about locking doors and such, because I was worried about people taking my stuff.  I got insurance and worried about my stuff getting taken, so I was very careful with my stuff. I write this because there was a posting on a local board that I read about a bicycle being stolen from someone’s garage, and it brought back to me, and made me wonder what some people are thinking in my neighbourhood.

I go off to work and it seems like my neighbours leave their garages open all day long, how trusting can you get? I realize no one is going to run off with my snow blower (although anything is possible), but the bicycles in my garage aren’t cheap, and worse still, the door into my garage from my house is rarely locked, so thus it is an open door to my house.

Do I have enough home insurance? I really am not sure, I think I can replace my house, and I can replace many items in it, but I hope not to have to find out. I have been meaning to do a home inventory of the major items, so at least I would have a guess what might need replacing, but it is something that you procrastinate about because you don’t think it will happen to you.

Am I being paranoid? I invite my readers to comment on this, but I am always worried that someone might be wanting to take my stuff, and I take action to stop that.

RIP George Carlin

Way off topic, but still I must mention the passing of George Carlin. He was an influence on me growing up, I must have worn out my copy of “Class Clown” and his mistrust of “the system” in general still pervades my belief system. I did manage to see him live in the late 90’s in Vegas and I am saddened that he is no longer with us.

Happy St. Jean Baptiste Day

A mes amis Quebecois,  I wish you a joyeux Fete National and hope there are many choruses sung of Gens du Pays sung. Vive Le Quebec!

Yup, glad to see that Quebec politics continues to be the most entertaining Theatersport in Canada. I am impressed that mes freres et soeurs Quebecois have caused the rest of Canada to go, “Why did they do that?”, again. Never try to understand Quebec politics, unless you want to end up in a rubber room, in a jacket that allows easy access to your kidneys! Bravo mes amis!

On the personal finance side of things, here is a good case study for you. For many years I have been a member of Aeroplan, Air Canada’s points per mile frequent flyer system (I am not endorsing this product, per say, I simply am giving you information). I have been doing a lot of driving lately, and figured I was going to have to rent a car to get to my daughter’s provincial championships (so I could leave my wife our van, since she has to drive my other kids around). I was lamenting how much it was going to cost, when a smart friend asked, “Don’t you have points somewhere?”. I thought and didn’t really take in what I was told, and kind of blew this friend off.

I went home that night and checked on the Aeroplan web site, and sure enough, yes I can use my miles to rent a car for the weekend. Now at the end of it, it costs me about the price of a round trip ticket from Ottawa to Toronto to do it (in points), however, given Aeroplan’s new “use them or lose them policy” of aging points (they last 2 years now?), using these points is a good thing, and all I have to pay for now is the gasoline for the weekend (and I am renting a Yaris, so that shouldn’t be as much as if I’d used my van).

Using points systems is a good thing, but remember that it is only an asset when you USE the points. –C8j