Nova Scotia Economy Growing, Creating Jobs

More jobs, higher personal income and increased exports all indicate a Nova Scotia economy that is performing better than expected.

Economic statistics for the first seven months of 2000 are better than anticipated in almost every category, Finance Minister Neil LeBlanc said today.

Employment is up by 3.1 per cent over the same period last year. In July 1999, employment totalled 408,500. The figure for July 2000 was 419,700, a net gain of 11,200 jobs. Over the whole year, job growth is expected to average 2.5 per cent, more than double the 1.1 per cent forecast in the April provincial budget.

The higher employment numbers mean the provincial unemployment rate averaged 8.9 per cent, a drop of 0.7 per cent from the same period last year. More jobs also mean more personal income which is expected to increase 4.1 per cent through 2000, 1.2 per cent more than forecast in April.

Job growth was highest in northern mainland Nova Scotia, with an 8.5 per cent increase, followed by 4.3 per cent for the Halifax area and three per cent for the Annapolis Valley. Cape Breton had no change in employment, while the South Shore had a decrease of 3.8 per cent.

"Despite these differences, Nova Scotia is definitely part of the economic growth that is occurring throughout North America," said Mr. LeBlanc.

This growth is evident in the increase of Nova Scotia exports. International merchandise exports, such as forest and fish products and natural gas have increased 15.4 per cent over the same period in 1999. Total exports of goods and services is anticipated to grow by 9.3 per cent in 2000.

The stronger than expected performance has caused the Department of Finance to revise its Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth rate. This year's GDP, the total value of all the goods and services produced in Nova Scotia, is now expected to increase by 2.4 per cent.

Other sources are also forecasting high economic growth for Nova Scotia. The Royal Bank and Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce are each forecasting three per cent growth, while Scotiabank and TD Bank are forecasting 2.6 per cent and 2.7 per cent respectively. The Conference Board of Canada is forecasting GDP growth of 2.1 per cent. More details on the province's economic performance can be found in the Nova Scotia Economic Outlook Report available on the department's website at www.gov.ns.ca/finance .