"What's New" in services data and analysis

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Studies and statistical information released from January 2007 to April 2007 pertaining to the service industries.

Recently released Industry Reports
Recently released analytical studies and reports
New initiatives

Recently released Industry Reports

Consumer Goods Rentals Industry

Buoyed by strong demand for home renovations and home entertainment products, Canada's consumer goods rental industry grew by a robust 8% to $2.5 billion in 2005. The total operating revenues earned by videotape and DVD rental establishments grew by a more modest 4%, as the average household's spending on home entertainment services, including rentals of pre-recorded media did not increase. Advances in technology have created alternative services such as video on demand which are now available to television subscribers. As well, consumers are increasingly opting to buy, rather than rent, their DVDs and videos. The 2005 Survey of the Household Spending reported that purchases of audio and video equipment, including both pre-recorded and blank media such as CDs, DVDs and tapes rose 6% to an average of $470 per household. See related article from The Daily

Software Development and Computer Services

Three of Canada's top information and communications technology (ICT) services industries combined for $30.7 billion in operating revenues in 2005, up 4% from the previous year. The computer systems design and related services industry remains the largest of the three ICT service industries covered by the survey, accounting for $21.6 billion in operating revenues. It is followed by software publishers at $6.4 billion and data processing, hosting and related services at $2.8 billion. See related article from The Daily

Travel Arrangement Services

Travel arrangement services had a relatively strong year in 2005, earning $8.9 billion in operating revenues, as the industry regained much of the momentum it lost after facing difficulties such as the threat of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and the war in Iraq earlier in the decade. The travel arrangement services industry, which is composed primarily of two industries (tour operating and travel agency industries), saw 10.5% growth in operating revenues over 2004, which were offset by an 11.1% increase in operating expenses. The overall outcome was a moderate weakening in the industry's operating profits with businesses posting a 2.0% before-tax operating profit margin, compared with 2.6% in 2004. See related article from The Daily

Traveller Accommodation

In 2005, the traveller accommodation industry posted its strongest performance since 2000, which was one of the better years for Canadian tourism. The industry's operating profit margin reached 15.3%, largely because its operating revenues rose 8.3%. According to the latest National tourism indicators release, domestic travellers were the main reason for the overall increase in tourism spending. Spending by Canadian tourists on accommodations climbed 9.8% in 2005, the largest annual gain since 2000. See related article from The Daily

Accounting Services

The Canadian accounting industry enjoyed a very prosperous year in 2005. Operating revenues climbed to $9.9 billion, a large 13.9% increase over the previous year. The industry continues to be very healthy, given that the large increase in 2005 follows significant growth of 5.7% in 2004 and 5.0% in 2003. This strong growth can be partially attributed to changes in business regulatory requirements, which led to increased demand for accounting services. An increased number of corporate transactions and the overall strength of the Canadian economy during this period were also contributing factors. See related article from The Daily

Food Services and Drinking Places

The food services and drinking places industry edged ahead in 2005, as operating revenue reached $38.9 billion, up 4.0% from 2004. While the industry continued to advance, the pace of growth was more moderate than the revised 6.0% gain observed in 2004. A generally strong economy, with notable increases in consumer spending and personal disposable income, helped stimulate the growth in 2005. While all regions experienced solid growth in 2004, stronger regional differences emerged in 2005. See related article from The Daily

Commercial & Industrial Machinery and Equipment Rental and Leasing

New business investment generates demand for machinery and equipment, some of which is leased or rented rather than purchased. As a result, the commercial and industrial machinery and equipment rental and leasing industries reported $5.9 billion in operating revenues in 2005, up 5.1% from 2004. See related article from The Daily

Engineering Services

Growing at a faster pace than the economy, the engineering services industry posted a double-digit revenue growth rate in 2005, building on a rebound that started in 2004 after a couple of sluggish years. Business investments, particularly in Western Canada due to the surging resource sector, were a major factor contributing to this strong expansion. See related article from The Daily

Advertising and Related Services

The advertising and related services industry soared to new heights in 2005, recording the largest revenue growth rate in recent memory. National operating revenues increased by 12.6%, as advertising businesses benefited from the red hot western economy and generally strong economic conditions. See related article from The Daily

Repair and Maintenance Services

Automotive repair and maintenance firms continued to report steady growth in 2005, but any profits that may have been enjoyed were swallowed up by rising labour costs due to a shortage of skilled labour. Total operating expenses for the industry grew to $11.1 billion, up 2.6% from 2004. Much of this increase can be attributed to a 9% growth in salaries and wages in 2005. See related article from The Daily

Book Publishers

The book publishing industry recorded total revenues of just over $2.4 billion in 2005, up only 1.6% from 2004. This was in sharp contrast to the 19% growth rate that occurred from 2000 to 2004. Despite the lackluster performance nationally, total revenue gains were strong in the West with British Columbia (+19.9%), Saskatchewan (+9.1%) and Alberta (+8.7%) outpacing the national average. See related article from The Daily

Heritage Institutions

Canada's heritage institutions, excluding nature parks and archives, again generated operating revenues of just over $1 billion in 2005, up 1% from the previous year. Not-for-profit institutions accounted for the vast majority (89%) of total operating revenue. The three most populous provinces accounted for four-fifths of the industry's revenues: Ontario (38%), Quebec (30%) and British Columbia (15%). See related article from The Daily

Real Estate Brokers

Total operating revenues reported by real estate agents, brokers, appraisers and other real estate industries increased by 10% in 2005 to $9.8 billion. The industry has grown by 37% over the past three years, reflecting an increase in volume of sales and higher prices of real estate. See related article from The Daily

Arts Entertainment and Recreation

The spectator sports industry, which includes professional and semi-professional sports clubs and teams, as well as horse racing, reported operating revenues of $1.6 billion in 2005. In current dollars, this was a 30% drop from $2.3 billion in 2004. This decline was partly attributable to the 310-day National Hockey League lockout that cancelled the 2004/2005 season, as well as the departure of the Montreal Expos. See related article from The Daily

Surveying and Mapping

The resource based boom in the West helped propel the surveying and mapping industry to $2.3 billion in operating revenues in 2005, a substantial 15.9% increase over 2004. Growth in operating revenues outpaced that of operating expenses (+14.1%), resulting in an operating profit margin increase. The operating profit margin was 10.5%, up from 9.0% in 2004. See related article from The Daily

Performing Arts

The live performing arts industry in Canada, including both for-profit and not-for-profit companies, again generated operating revenues of approximately $1.2 billion in 2005, up 2.2% from the previous year. Total industry operating revenue was split almost equally between the two sectors, with the for-profit sector representing slightly more, at 52%. See related article from The Daily

Automotive Equipment Rental and Leasing

Businesses classified to the automotive equipment rental and leasing industry earned operating revenues of $4.7 billion in 2005, up 4.1% from 2004. Rental and leasing of passenger cars generated 62% of operating revenues, while the remainder was generated through the rental and leasing of trucks, utility trailers and recreational vehicles. See related article from The Daily

Electronic, commercial and industrial machinery and equipment repair and maintenance services

Buoyed by continued strong mining and construction activity in Alberta, businesses that repair and maintain electronic, commercial and industrial machinery and equipment earned operating revenues of $6.5 billion in 2005, an increase of 10.0% from 2004. This was the third consecutive year of rapid expansion for the industry. See related article from The Daily

Specialized Design Services

Specialized design and landscape architecture firms generated $2.6 billion in operating revenues in 2005, up 5% from the previous year. Operating revenues earned by firms in Western Canada grew at a much higher rate than those in the rest of the country. The operating profit margin for the industry, at 11.3%, was relatively unchanged from the previous year. See related article from The Daily

Recently released analytical studies and reports

Research and development personnel - 1995 to 2004

Researchers comprised nearly two-thirds of all personnel involved in research and development (R&D) in 2004, and the overwhelming majority of them were natural science researchers. Researchers also formed the largest category of R&D personnel in business enterprises, higher education institutions and federal and provincial governments. See related article from The Daily

Study: Unemployment in Canada's metropolitan areas - 2000 to 2006

Canada's 28 metropolitan areas have accounted for nearly three-quarters of the growth in employment in the country during the past seven years. Between 2000 and 2006, employment nationally rose by just over 1.7 million. Of this total, census metropolitan areas accounted for an estimated 1.3 million, or about 73%. See related article from The Daily

Study: Low-income rates among immigrants entering Canada - 1992 to 2004

The economic situation of new immigrants to Canada showed no improvement after the turn of the millennium — despite the fact that they had much higher levels of education and many more were in the skilled immigrant class than a decade earlier. See related article from The Daily

Financial and taxation statistics for enterprises - 2005

Corporate operating profits, bolstered by the surging oil and gas industry, hit their second consecutive record high in 2005. Corporations earned operating profits of $249.9 billion, surpassing by 14.9% the previous record of $217.5 billion set in 2004. The improvement was broadly based. Profits in the non-financial industries jumped 17.2% to $186.2 billion and those in the financial industries rose 8.6% to $63.7 billion. See related article from The Daily

Canadian international merchandise trade - 2006

Canada's merchandise exports to the world hit a record annual high in 2006, despite the first decline in exports to the United States in three years. In total, Canadian companies exported nearly $458.2 billion worth of merchandise abroad last year, a 1.1% gain from 2005. However, imports rose nearly four times as fast (+4.2%) to $404.5 billion, which was also a record high. See related article from The Daily

Retail trade - 2006

Retailers posted their highest monthly sales gain in nine years in December, with widespread increases in all eight retail sectors. The year-end flourish, combined with hot sales in Alberta, pushed sales for 2006 as a whole to their strongest annual growth rate since 1997. See related article from The Daily

Study: Recent trends in output and employment - 2006

Several economic and statistical reasons explain why labour productivity did in fact slow last year, according to a new study. The study examines reasons for one of the major economic developments in 2006 — the slowdown in growth of output, accompanied by steady gains in employment. Typically, output exceeds employment growth by over 1%, reflecting the upward trend of productivity. The convergence of output and employment gains late in 2006 implied a slowdown in the growth of productivity. This study attempts to clarify why this happened. See related article from The Daily

International travel account - 2006

Canada's international travel deficit soared to an all-time high in 2006, as spending by Canadians in both the United States and overseas countries climbed to record levels. The deficit, the difference between spending by Canadians abroad and spending by foreigners in Canada, jumped $1.4 billion to an estimated $7.2 billion in 2006. The travel deficit has increased every year since 2002, and in that span, has more than quadrupled. See related article from The Daily

Canada's balance of international payments - 2006

Canada's current account surplus with the rest of the world stood at $3.0 billion in the fourth quarter, on a seasonally adjusted basis, down $2.8 billion from the previous quarter. This was the lowest surplus in more than three years, as a large increase in the deficit on investment income more than offset an improved performance for goods. For the year 2006, the current account surplus fell, due to a lower goods surplus, to $24.3 billion, down $7.5 billion from the 2005 record. See related article from The Daily

Canadian economic accounts - Fourth quarter 2006, December 2006 and annual 2006

The economy gained momentum throughout the fourth quarter of 2006, closing the year with 0.4% growth in December. For the quarter as a whole, the pace of economic activity eased slightly as the economy advanced 2.7% over the year. Real gross domestic product (GDP) was up 0.4% in the fourth quarter, following an increase of 0.5% in the second and third quarters. Growth was largely driven by higher personal expenditure and the strengthening of exports. However, these gains were dampened by the draw-down of non-farm inventories. See related article from The Daily

Study: Employment trends in the federal public service - 1995 to 2006

There are slightly fewer of them, but federal employees in general are more knowledge-based than they were in the mid-1990s, according to a new study. In addition, women have made important inroads into the public service, the average age of public servants is rising, and they are older on average than Canadian workers as a whole. In March 2006, just over 380,700 individuals were working for the federal government, down slightly from nearly 382,000 in March 1995. See related article from The Daily

Tourism satellite account: Human resource module update – 1997 to 2005

The number of jobs in the tourism industries increased 0.9% in 2005. This came on the heels of a strong 2.1% rebound in 2004 from SARS-related job losses in the previous year. In contrast, the number of jobs in the economy as a whole rose 1.6% in 2005, following a 1.9% gain in 2004. Three groups posted solid gains: air transportation (+3.5%), accommodation (+2.5%) and travel services (+4.5%), industries that are highly dependent on tourism demand. Job growth was much weaker in recreation and entertainment, and food and beverage services where tourism demand is less of a factor. See related article from The Daily

Annual wholesale trade - 2005

Wholesalers recorded another year of strong growth in operating revenues in 2005, thanks in large part to substantial back-to-back gains in the petroleum sector. Operating revenues for wholesalers hit $626.5 billion in 2005, up 7.6% from 2004. The rate of growth was slightly slower than the 9.1% increase in the previous year. See related article from The Daily

Study: GDP per capita and productivity in Canada and the United States - 1994 to 2005

Canada's economic output per person is lower than it is in the United States, but the gap has narrowed since the turn of the millennium, according to a new study. Canada's gross domestic product (GDP) per capita stood at 84.3% of GDP per capita in the United States in 2005, an improvement from the low of 81.0% in 1998. This was also slightly above the average of 83.2% for the 12-year period between 1994 and 2005. See related article from The Daily

Annual retail trade - 2005

Consumers shelled out more money at gas pumps and home furnishings stores in 2005, pushing annual retail sales to their fastest growth rate since 2002. The nation's retailers reported operating revenues of $403.6 billion in 2005, up 5.4% from the previous year. The gain was well above the average annual growth rate of 4.7% between 2000 and 2005. See related article from The Daily

National tourism indicators - Fourth quarter 2006 and annual 2006

Tourism spending advanced for the 14th consecutive quarter at the end of 2006, bolstered by tourism outlays by Canadians and a turnaround in spending by non-residents visiting Canada. Overall tourism spending (resident and non-resident) was up 1.8% in the fourth quarter. Tourism demand has been on the rise since the second quarter of 2003. See related article from The Daily

Innovation and export orientation among knowledge-intensive service industries - 2003

Knowledge-intensive firms in the business service sector that engage in innovation are far more likely to be exporters than other such firms. This positive association between innovation and export orientation holds true even when accounting for the impact of country of control, size of business, industry, knowledge-intensity and the use of intellectual property protection. See related article from The Daily

Quarterly Retail Commodity Survey - Annual 2006 and fourth quarter 2006

Consumer spending in the nation's retail stores in 2006 was at very buoyant levels, thanks to strong increases in most commodity groupings. Canadians spent $392.4 billion in retail stores last year, up 6.4% from 2005. Proportionately, of every $100 in consumer spending in retail stores last year, consumers spent about $21 on food and beverages, $22 on motor vehicles, parts and services, $10 on automotive fuels oils and additives, $9 on furniture and home furnishing, $9 on health and personal care, $8 on clothing footwear and accessories, $7 on hardware, lawn and garden materials, $3 on sporting and leisure goods, and $2 on non-electric housewares. The remainder, about $9, was spent on all other goods and services such as tobacco and pet food. See related article from The Daily

Study: Year end review of the economy - 2006

In retrospect, the most surprising development in Canada's economy last year was not that a surge in oil prices or the bursting of the American housing bubble failed to dampen growth, according to a year-end review of the economy. Instead, the surprise was that so many people continued to underestimate the ability of Canadians to react and adapt to fast-changing or unexpected circumstances, the review suggests. See related article from The Daily

Investment in non-residential building construction - First quarter 2007

Heavy spending on office buildings in Alberta and British Columbia pushed investment in non-residential building construction to another record high in the first three months of 2007. First-quarter investment hit $9.4 billion, up 3.3% from the fourth quarter and the 16th consecutive quarterly increase. In constant dollars, investment in non-residential building construction increased 0.8% from the fourth quarter. See related article from The Daily

Canadian international merchandise trade - February 2007

Canadian exports slowed in February, down 2.1% from a record high in January, partly as a result of a 15-day railway strike, which interrupted regular transportation patterns, making it difficult for exporters to ship their products to the border or port. See related article from The Daily

Profile of Canadian exporters - 1996 to 2005

The number of Canadian establishments that export merchandise fell for the first time according to the latest version of the Exporter Register. While the number of exporters declined, the value of exports increased between 2004 and 2005. See related article from The Daily

Current economic conditions

Output and employment continued to grow early in the new year, although the change from record warmth to below-average temperatures after mid-January make monthly changes hard to interpret. Employment increased 0.3% in March, capping its largest quarterly increase (+1%) in over four years. However, hours worked in the first quarter rose only 0.3%. Part-time positions grew faster than full-time, a reversal of the trend in 2006. Partly, this reflects the sharp growth of jobs held by youths, who have a marked preference for part-time work. See related article from The Daily

Travel between Canada and other countries - February 2007

Travel between Canada and the United States fell in both directions in February, possibly the result of new passport requirements for air travel into the United States that came into force on January 23. However, overnight plane travel from the United States to Canada rebounded from the three-year low in January, up 2.7% to 312,000. Despite the increase, figures were still 2.5% lower than the monthly average observed during the 12 previous months. See related article from The Daily

Consumer Price Index - March 2007

Consumers paid 2.3% more in March for the goods and services in the Consumer Price Index (CPI) basket than they did in March 2006, owing largely to the strong increase in gasoline prices throughout the country. This was slightly higher than the 2.0% increase recorded for February. See related article from The Daily

Retail trade - February 2007

Retail sales were essentially flat in February, masking underlying differences in movements among retail trade groups. Weak sales at new car dealers were offset by strong sales growth in other major retail sectors in February. See related article from The Daily

Electronic commerce and technology - 2006

Online sales recorded their fifth consecutive year of double-digit growth in 2006, as e-commerce gained momentum among Canadian retailers. Private and public sector online sales combined surged 40% to $49.9 billion. Online sales by private firms increased 42% to $46.5 billion, while those by the public sector rose 17% to $3.4 billion. See related article from The Daily

Provincial and territorial economic accounts - 2006 (preliminary)

Alberta, the economic powerhouse, led the country in economic growth for the third consecutive year in 2006. Economic growth was generally more vigorous among western provinces than in central and eastern provinces in 2006. Overall, real gross domestic product (GDP) for Canada eased slightly from 2.9% in 2005 to 2.7% in 2006. Across the country, investment, trade and financial services all contributed as service production generally outpaced goods production. See related article from The Daily

New initiatives

Some important new initiatives involving Statistics Canada's Service Industries Division:

Integration of Culture Statistics Program: Another important initiative is the integration of Statistics Canada's culture industry surveys. Previously, data for many cultural industries were released every 2 to 3 years rather than annually. Moreover, these data were not fully comparable to other data sources. In 2007 the integration of these surveys into the Service Industries Division program is leading to higher quality annual statistics for an expanded number of cultural industries — even at the provincial level. For example, the performing arts, heritage institutions, archives, film, sound recording and periodicals industries will have improved coverage. The data is also being released in a timely manner. This initiative reduces costs and response burden by eliminating duplication in data collection and processing. As well, the new survey results are expected to not only be consistently measured across the culture sector, they are also more comparable to those recorded in the United States and Mexico.

Business Conditions Survey, Traveller Accommodations: The traveller accommodation industry is an ideal candidate for a Business Conditions Survey because leisure and business travel are often affected when household and corporate budgets are adjusted in response to changing economic conditions. This new initiative springs from a partnership between Statistics Canada, The Canadian Tourism Commission and the Ontario Ministry of Recreation and Culture. The latest results from this Business Conditions Survey appeared in Statistics Canada's Daily of May 2, 2007. The survey of nearly 1,400 businesses, most of which are hotels, is conducted to assess their outlook about key indicators such as bookings, occupancy rates, room rates, and hours worked by employees. A pilot project was recently launched to assess the feasibility of conducting a similar Business Conditions Survey for the Tour Operators industry.

Service Industries Newsletter: This is the fifth edition of a Newsletter that covers a wide variety of service industries for which statistics and industry reports are made available. Each issue also has a new Feature Article pertaining to one or more service industries or, occasionally, the service sector as a whole. Also provided is a link to an Analytical Paper Series, also available for free. The Series currently comprises over 50 papers. Through this Newsletter, one can also learn about the methodologies used for business surveys and easily locate information that is helpful to survey respondents. It is envisioned that once our quarterly sub-annual program is implemented, this Newsletter will be published on a quarterly basis to coincide with the Quarterly Services Indicators releases and serve as the primary release vehicle for these indicators.

Monthly Restaurants, Caterers and Taverns Survey (MRCTS) reengineering project: The purpose of this initiative is to revamp the survey and its infrastructure. These projects are carried out periodically (the last one dates back to 1995) to take full advantage of technological advances and keep the survey up-to-date in terms of concepts and methods. The MRCTS reengineering will therefore maximize the use of GST data (which will reduce the response burden) and harmonize the MRCTS conceptual base with that of the Annual Survey of the Food Services and Drinking Places Industry, as well as with the upcoming changes to the Business Register and with the Department's general standards. The first estimates following the MRCTS reengineering should be released in the summer of 2007.

Quarterly Services Indicators: Most of the service industries data presented in this publication come from annual surveys. Since these data must be collected, processed, and then put through several quality control procedures, the annual results can only be released about 12 to15 months after the end of the reference year. A new project is underway to create more timely sub-annual industry indicators based on administrative tax data. This will lead to the release of quarterly revenue growth rates for some service industries to supplement the annual data. Moreover, timeliness will be vastly improved because the quarterly indicators will be available three months following the relevant quarter. This section will update readers regarding future progress for this initiative.