8. Mark Carney
In Canada's most talked about career change of 2013, the popular central banker became the first foreigner to run the Bank of England. Carney is already making the BofE more like the BoC, by issuing forward guidance and clamping down on potentially bubble-causing real estate activities. And under Carney, the British will be getting plastic banknotes, too.
7. Dollarama
The dollar store chain has seen rapid sales growth driven by rapid store growth. This year it had 850 stores, up from 760 a year ago. And it plans to keep adding locations. Earnings were up 20 per cent in the latest quarter and its stock price has jumped 52 per cent in the past year. The chain is benefitting from an influx of cost-conscious consumers.
6. Jim Flaherty
Personal struggles aside, federal Finance Minister Jim Flaherty had some big wins this year, crowned by his fall projection that the economy was on track to post a $3.7-billion surplus in 2015 — the year of the next federal election. The news that the federal government is some $7 billion and a year ahead of schedule on its balanced budget plan painted the finance minister as an economic hero, despite the fact that Canada's economy is underperforming many of its global peers.
5. Loblaws / Shoppers Drug Mart
The mega-merger of two of Canada's most powerful retailers, both of which had been struggling with internal issues amid a more competitive retail landscape, helps position them in a cutthroat retail market. The $12.4 billion deal shakes up the industry for small convenience stores and retail giants Target and Walmart alike.
4. Canada's Banks
Canadian banks combined earn about $55,000 every minute. And while they are seeing varying levels of success (TD is outperforming, with its outgoing head named CEO of the year), their profits continue to rise every quarter. Consumers are generally paying their debts and the long-expected housing slowdown has yet to materialize.
3. Rogers Communications
Rogers scored one of the biggest and most talked about deals in Canada this year with its 12-year, $5.2 billion NHL broadcast contract, turning the hockey tables squarely in its favour. The largest deal in the league's history gives Rogers broadcast and multimedia rights over all NHL games.
2. The Prairie Provinces
Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba continue to produce above average economic growth and robust hiring environments that supported the Canadian economy in 2013. Immigration into the provinces on the back of hot resource sectors has helped boost the construction and retail spaces as well.
1. Big Telecom
Bell, Rogers and Telus in 2013 managed to keep a U.S. telecom giant from entering the Canadian market and potentially shaking up the industry. Rumours swirled earlier this summer that Verizon Wireless was interested in expanding north. The big three launched an aggressive PR effort and Verizon backed down, leaving the incumbent players with virtually no major competition aside from one another.
THE LOSERS
8. Target Canada
It was the most hotly-anticipated arrival of a U.S. retailer in Canada since Walmart a generation ago, but shoppers soon became disillusioned when they discovered Target Canada would be charging Canadian, not American, prices. The rollout of more than 130 stores in Canada in 2013 dragged down Target’s earnings for the year, serving as a cautionary example for other U.S. retailers eyeing a Canadian expansion.
7. Unions
Unions have been in decline in Canada for years, but developments in 2013 suggest an even darker outlook to come. Saskatchewan’s new labour laws have been criticized as a prelude to “right to work” laws that could undermine unions’ finances by making union dues optional. And the federal government slipped labour law changes into its budget bill that the unions say undermine the right to collective bargaining and make work conditions more dangerous. Eighteen public-sector unions are suing over the changes.
6. CGI Group
Montreal-based software giant CGI found itself at the centre of an American political firestorm this year, when the website it built for Obamacare turned out to be full of glitches. CGI execs testified in Congress, trying to explain why the website kept delivering errors. But investors stuck with the company, likely because the U.S. government is such as lucrative source of revenue, and its stock price continued to climb in the months after the Obamacare rollout.
Pictured: CGI Group founder and chairman Serge Godin, left, chats with chief executive Michael Roach before the start of the company's annual meeting Wednesday, February 1, 2012.
5. The Mining Industry
Canada’s mining companies faced political problems around the world and slumping commodity prices in 2013. Companies took billions in write-downs and suspended numerous projects, including Barrick Gold’s Pascua Lama gold mine in South America, while Cliffs Natural Resources, a U.S. company, indefinitely suspended development of the massive Ring of Fire mining project in northern Ontario. Local opposition to Canadian mines also ramped up this year. Gabriel Resources’ plans to mine gold in Romania were met with loud street protests, as environmentalists objected to the lake of cyanide that would be created by the project.
4. Factory Workers
Canada lost about 2.5 per cent of its manufacturing jobs since the start of 2013, with Ontario losing about 4 per cent of its factory jobs. That’s despite a global auto sales boom and improving economic conditions in the U.S. With the loonie now weakening, exports could pick up significantly. But even that may not be enough to rescue the jobs in the sector. When Canada’s manufacturing output returned to pre-recession levels in 2011, it did so with 200,000 fewer jobs. Factories are making stuff, but the jobs are disappearing.
3. Consumers And Their Debt
Canadians’ household debt hit a record 163.7 per cent of income in 2013, an all-time high that means the typical household owes nearly $1.64 for every dollar earned. Not all of that is due to house prices rocketing in recent years, either: Non-mortgage debt jumped 21 per cent in the past year, according to a survey from RBC. Without significant wage gains (which we’re not seeing), Canadians will be hard-pressed to take on more debt, and that’s a bad sign for retailers and real estate. One good sign: Loan delinquencies aren't rising, meaning so far we're handling the debt.
2. Lululemon
Lululemon had a terrible year, to put it mildly. First there was the recall of its signature yoga pants due to sheerness, and reports store clerks were asking customers who wanted a refund to bend over to prove their pants were too sheer. Then it turned out the pants were pilling, too. But the coup de grace came in November, when company founder Chip Wilson appeared to blame the company’s quality problems on women’s bodies. 2014 will be the year we find out whether Lululemon can pull out of its downward spiral.
1. BlackBerry
If any Canadian company had a worse year than Lululemon, it’s BlackBerry. After a posting a near-$1 billion loss for the second quarter, the company announced it was planning to lay off 40 per cent of its staff. Billionaire investor Prem Watsa’s Fairfax Financial announced a $4.7-billion takeover of the company, but that deal fell through when Fairfax couldn’t raise the money. CEO Thorsten Heins resigned, and was replaced by John Chen, who has so far been largely quiet about the company’s future. Most recently, the company clocked a $4.4-billion loss for the third quarter. With BlackBerry unable to sell phones or itself, the one question that really remains is: Can it survive at all?
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