CHHMA - EYE ON OUR INDUSTRY

Volume 13, Issue 38, October 16, 2013

Inside This Issue:
  
• Make Plans to Attend the Industry Cocktail on December 5th
• International Home+Housewares Show – March 15-18, 2014
• Sears Canada’s Head Office Braces for More Layoffs Under New CEO
• Canadian Tire REIT Said to Have Raised $263.5 Million in IPO
• Fourth Quarter Sales and Profit Up for Costco but Below Market Expectations 
• Canadian Home Resales Continue to Show Strength in September
• Canadian House Prices Gain in Third Quarter: Royal LePage Survey Shows
• New Home Prices in Canada Edge Up in August and a Tame 1.8% Year-Over-Year Strong
• Canada-U.S. Price Gap Narrows Somewhat in Latest BMO Report
• Companies Hesitant to Hire and Invest: Bank of Canada Survey
• Canada’s Unemployment Rate Drops to 5-Year Low as Fewer Youths Look for Work
• U.S. Consumer Sentiment Falls to 9-Month Low



Association News 



Make Plans to Attend the Industry Cocktail on December 5th 
 
This year’s Industry Cocktail will be taking place on Thursday, December 5th, from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. at Bar Reine de Coeur located at the recently renovated Casino de Montreal.  This traditional industry year-end event brings together a wide spectrum of people from the industry including manufacturers, distributors and retailers. The location offers a fun and relaxing atmosphere where you can enjoy some wonderful food, drinks and conversation with your industry colleagues while enjoying the festive season together.  Further details and information on how to register will be ready later this week, but in the meantime, please mark your calendars and make your plans to attend now.  




Industry News
 
International Home+Housewares Show – March 15-18, 2014

The 2014 International Home+Housewares Show is taking place from Saturday, March 15 to Tuesday, March 18 at McCormick Place in Chicago.
The show brings together the world’s largest audience of home goods and housewares professionals including 2,100 exhibitors from over 40 countries and 60,000 attendees representing over 120 countries.  It is the place to see leading housewares manufacturers and suppliers from across the world, innovative new products and merchandising, as well as the latest consumer lifestyle and product trends for all areas of the home, both inside and out – all under one roof. The show offers an opportunity to attend first-class learning seminars and meet with both independent specialty retailers and corporate buyers within the industry.

For show information and free online pre-registration, go to:

Visitors: http://www.housewares.org/attend                     Exhibitors: http://www.housewares.org/exhibit
 

And while in town for the show, make sure to attend the 65th Canada Night reception which is being held at the InterContinental Hotel in Chicago on Sunday, March 16, 2014 from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. This event provides and opportunity for Canadian vendors, agents and suppliers to get together with their peers and Canadian retailers in a social environment while celebrating the common bond of being Canadian and enjoying the beer and wine bar and some excellent cuisine.  Further details and registration info for Canada Night registration details will be available later in the year.



Sears Canada's Head Office Braces for More Layoffs Under New CEO

Head office employees at Sears Canada are bracing for more layoffs as the struggling retailer moves forward under its new turnaround specialist CEO.  The Financial Post reported that the company held a series of head office meetings last week with employees at multiple levels and departments to outline its strategies, according to sources, which include a goal of streamlining head office and decreasing its salary costs.  The scope of the pending cuts was not revealed, and no store-level employees will be affected, sources said.  The reports come at a time of renewed turbulence for the retailer, which saw the surprise exit last month of CEO Calvin McDonald, who was replaced by former chief operating officer Douglas Campbell.  Read More >>

 



 

Canadian Tire REIT Said to Have Raised $236.5 Million in IPO 

Canadian Tire Corporation’s real estate investment trust (REIT) raised $263.5 million in an initial public offering, according to two people familiar with the transaction.  CT Real Estate Investment Trust, created by the country’s largest sporting goods retailer, sold 26.35 million trust units for $10 each, with an initial yield of 6.5%, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the terms aren’t public.  Read More >>

 



Fourth Quarter Sales and Profit Up for Costco but Below Market Expectations

Costco Wholesale Corporation reported last week a 1.3% increase in its fourth-quarter profit on higher same-store sales, although results missed Wall Street expectations.  The wholesale club has recently benefited from an increase in store traffic, as cost-conscious shoppers look to save money by making bulk purchases. Costco’s gasoline pumps also drive customers to its clubs. Costco, which operates 638 warehouses, said it plans to open 11 additional warehouses by the end of this year. In the latest quarter ended Sept. 1, Costco’s net income rose to $617 million, or $1.40 a share, from $609 million, or $1.39, in the year-ago period. Revenue edged up 0.8% to $32.49 billion.  Analysts were looking for per-share earnings of $1.46 and revenue of $32.82 billion.  Read More >>



Economic News
 
Canadian Home Resales Continue to Show Strength in September


According to statistics released on Tuesday by the Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA), national home sales across Canada posted a small month-over-month increase in September while sales were up 18.2% on a year-over-year basis.  CREA reported that the number of home sales processed through the MLS Systems of Canadian real estate boards and associations and other co-operative listing systems edged up a modest 0.8% on a month-over-month basis in September.  Actual (not seasonally adjusted) activity remained roughly on par with the 10-year average in September. The 18.2% increase compared to year-ago levels reflects weakened activity at that time.  Read More >>


Canadian House Prices Gain in Third Quarter: Royal LePage Survey Shows  

The Royal LePage House Price Survey released last Thursday showed the average price of a home in Canada increased between 1.2% and 4.1% in the third quarter of 2013. The survey showed a year-over-year average price increase of 3.7% to $418,686 for standard two-storey homes, while detached bungalows rose 4.1% to $381,811. During the same period, the average price for standard condominiums saw a more moderate increase, rising 1.2% to $246,530. Sales volumes surged in a number of regions, as Canadians re-entered the housing market after sitting on the sidelines for more than a year - marking the end of the most significant housing market correction since the 2008-2009 global recession.   Read More >>



New Home Prices in Canada Edge Up in August and a Tame 1.8% Year-Over-Year
 
New house prices in Canada rose moderately in August from the previous month and were a tame 1.8% higher than a year earlier, Statistics Canada reported last Thursday.  The New Housing Pricing (NHPI) rose 0.1% in August, following a 0.2% increase in July.  Calgary was the top contributor to the national increase, with prices rising 0.6% in August.  Read More >>



Canada-U.S. Price Gap Narrows Somewhat in Latest BMO Report

A report last week from BMO Nesbitt Burns showed the price gap on a basket of goods - it describes it as a “semi-random” sample – has narrowed somewhat to 10% from 14% when it last sampled cross-border prices in May of 2012.  But BMO chief economist Douglas Porter said the drop is mainly attributable to a modest decline in the value of Canadian dollar over the same period. “It’s entirely the currency,” Mr. Porter said. “The underlying gap hasn’t really changed in the past year.”  Read More >>


Companies Hesitant to Hire and Invest: Bank of Canada Survey

Canadian companies are turning progressively gloomier about the slow pace of the world’s economy and say they want to see signs of progress before ramping up hiring and investment, a new Bank of Canada survey suggests. The findings of the central bank’s latest quarterly business outlook (autumn survey) released last Friday is not good news for those hoping to see a strong economic rebound in the second half of this year or in 2014 after what has been almost two years of sluggish growth. “Weak demand and uncertainty regarding future demand continue to weigh on firms’ investment decisions and near-term capacity planning,” the bank said in its summation.  Part of the reason is that a majority of business reported flat or falling sales in the past year.  Read More >>



Canada's Unemployment Rate Drops to 5-Year Low as Fewer Youths Look for Work 
 
Canada’s labour market plateaued in September, after months of erratic gains and losses, and the nation’s unemployment rate declined to the lowest level in nearly five years as fewer people — mainly youths — were
looking for work.  About 11,900 jobs were created last month, all of them full-time positions in the private sector, Statistics Canada said last Friday. The most notable declines were in manufacturing and public administration, while the finance, insurance and real estate sector added the most jobs. Economists had expected about 10,000 jobs to be created in September.  The unemployment rate, meanwhile, declined to 6.9% in September — the lowest level since December 2008 — from 7.1% in August.  The decline came as 21,400 workers aged 15 to 24 stopped looking for employment.  Read More >>



U.S. Consumer Sentiment Falls to 9-Month Low

U.S. consumer sentiment deteriorated in October to its weakest in nine months as the first federal government shutdown in 17 years undermined Americans’ outlook on the economy, a survey released last Friday showed. The Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan’s preliminary reading on the overall index on consumer sentiment fell to 75.2 in October, down from 77.5 in September. This was the lowest figure since January.  The early October reading fell short of the 76.0 forecast by economists recently polled by Reuters.  Read More >>
 

 

 Upcoming CHHMA Events 

       
Industry Cocktail
Thursday, December 5, 2013
Casino de Montreal, Montreal, Quebec

Canada Night
Sunday, March 16, 2014
InterContinental Hotel, Chicago, Illinois

CHHMA Spring Conference & AGM
Wednesday, April 23, 2014
International Centre (Conference Facility), Mississauga, Ontario

CHHMA Maple Leaf Night
Tuesday, May 6, 2014
Location TBA, Las Vegas, Nevada

CHHMA Quebec Golf Classic
Thursday, May 22, 2014
Club de golf Le Fontainebleau, Blainville, Quebec

CHHMA Ontario Golf Tournament
Tuesday, May 27, 2014
Angus Glen Golf Club, Markham, Ontario

CHHMA Industry Calendar

To register for all events visit our website at www.chhma.ca or call Pam Winter at (416) 282-0022 ext.21.


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"Eye On Our Industry" is published by the CHHMA as an information resource for our members. Member input regarding content and format is welcomed. Please contact Michael Jorgenson by email: mjorgenson@chhma.ca, or call at (416) 282-0022, ext. 34. CHHMA is located at 1335 Morningside Ave., Suite 101, Scarborough, ON, M1B 5M4 www.chhma.ca