A closer look at three aspects of Winnipeg’s economy

On Thursday, Mayor Bowman gives his second State of the City Address. We took a look at three indicators in Peg’s Economy theme to see how Winnipeg is doing: Unemployment, Retail Sales, and Businesses Per Capita.

Peg tells us…

Unemployment Rate

Winnipeg’s unemployment rate has been lower than the national rate since the early 1990s.

The unemployment rate shows the percentage of Canadian adults (15 years of age and over) who are not working for pay, and are therefore not in a position to earn income. It is a common measure of economic well-being, and is one of the major social determinants of health.

More facts available at:

Retail Sales

Over a five-year period, annual retail sales in Winnipeg increased 18% from $9.2 billion in 2009 to $10.9 billion in 2014. 

Retail sales figures track the dollar value of merchandise sold within the retail trade, and reflect consumer spending and confidence.

More facts available at: http://www.mypeg.ca/explorer/WellBeing/Economy/RetailSales/

Businesses Per Capita

The number of businesses per capita is at its highest level since 2000, increasing from 52.9 businesses per 1,000 Winnipeggers in 2000 to 59.6 in 2013.

In Canada, 70% of the total private sector labour force is employed by small businesses. Their contribution to economic development is made in several ways: converting innovative ideas into economic opportunities, revitalizing social and productive networks, and increasing productivity.

More facts available at: http://www.mypeg.ca/explorer/WellBeing/Economy/Businesses/

Source of the data:

Peg’s data for the Unemployment Rate indicator provided by Statistics Canada. Data for Businesses per Canada and Retail Sales provided by Economic Development Winnipeg.

Media inquiries:
For interviews on Peg, the data, or to be connected with organizations making a difference in the community, please contact:

Sumeep Bath, Media and Communications Officer

International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD)

(204) 958-7740 | sbath@iisd.ca

About us:

Peg (mypeg.ca) is a community indicator system that measures the health of our community year over year – in ways that count. Peg is led by two partnering organizations – the International Institute of Sustainable Development (IISD) and United Way of Winnipeg (UW).

Regularly, the team at Peg releases data and facts that help us understand our city better. This is one of those regular reports. Others can be found at http://www.mypeg.ca/blog.

Peg is the starting place for Winnipeg citizens, educators, policy makers, and many others to learn more about our city so we can lead change to create a better city for our children and their children. At Peg we can all learn how our lives, our neighbourhood and our city is changing – for the good and the bad. Learn more at www.mypeg.ca.