Cover Story
By Kerri Wilcox
The State of the Economy
and the Future for Young Workers
S
ince 1999, the ICABC has released the BC Check-Up, an annual report that evaluates British Columbia’s overall
economic health. With the unification of BC’s three professional accounting bodies now under way, research
gathered for the report will inform CPABC’s public policy recommendations to government, and will drive
public affairs activities that promote the business and economic expertise of the broadened membership.
This year’s Check-Up reviews the state of the province’s economy in 2012, and forecasts where we’re going in 2013. The
report focuses on key economic drivers, and assesses how current market trends will affect the outlook for young workers.
Investment cooled, but solid economic fundamentals maintained
2013 BC Check-Up
A digital edition of the
BC Check-Up is available
at www.bccpa.ca under
the Publications tab.
While BC’s economy has largely recovered since the 2009 recession, there was a slowdown in economic expansion last
year. Our province’s real GDP growth rate declined from 2.6% in 2011 to 1.7% in 2012.1 This was due to several
factors, most significantly a decline in the value of exports, a slowdown in the housing market, and a reduction in
government spending. In addition, lower than expected natural gas and mineral prices affected resource company
revenues and reduced the royalties collected by the provincial government. One bright spot was the renewed demand
for BC softwood lumber in the US, resulting from increased housing construction activity.
Job creation in BC faltered in late 2012, contributing to an ongoing flattening of retail spending. Slowing population
growth rates were also a factor, with 2011 and 2012 marking the slowest