Dec.23, 2016
Whitehorse Chamber E-Bulletin “The Voice Of Business”
In This Week’s Edition for Dec.23rd, 2016.....
1. Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays From The Whitehorse Chamber Of Commerce 2. City Of Whitehorse New Year’s Events 3. Arctic Indigenous Investment Conference 4. Dana Naye Ventures Update 5. Canada Revenue Agency - Small Business Deduction 6. 5 Minutes For Business: Mr.Trump And The Economy 7. City Of Whitehorse Update 8. Pathways To Wellness
Enjoy Our Events On New Year's Eve Post Date:12/21/2016
Whitehorse – Join us Saturday, December 31 to ring in the New Year and celebrate the 150th anniversary of Confederation. Free family swim, skate and field activities will take place from 3 pm - 6 pm at the Canada Games Centre. The party will move to Shipyards Park for the Canada 150 New Year’s Eve Countdown from 6 pm onwards. Juno award winning artist Classified will be headlining the evening and the event will showcase the following supporting acts: The Dakhká Khwáan Dancers, Soir de Semaine, Speed Control, Usagi Forest, boSo, The Midnight Sons Band, Soda Pony, Major Funk and the Employment. There will be fireworks at 9 pm and midnight. Please note all vehicle and pedestrian traffic on Long Lake Road and Wickstrom Road will be stopped from 8:45 pm to 9:15 pm and closed again from 11:45 pm to 12:15 am. Only local traffic will be allowed passage, except when the fireworks are being set off. Please remember these tips to ensure a happy and safe evening for all to enjoy: •
Parking will be limited. Transit is offering a special free shuttle from 5 pm to 1 am between the Canada Games Centre, Takhini Arena and Shipyards Park. • Pets are often startled by fireworks. Please take extra precautions to keep your animals safe and secure on New Year’s Eve. • Leave fireworks to the professionals. Please be reminded the use of fireworks is strictly prohibited within city limits at any time of year, pursuant to the Firearms Bylaw. For more event details, visit www.whitehorse.ca/specialevents Visit www.whitehorse.ca/transit for Transit shuttle and schedule information.
Growing Yukon Businesses Since 1985 Phone: 867.668.6925 or Visit www.dananaye.yk.net
NEWS & UPDATES Loans Department
DNV Says Good bye to
DNV lends to ALL Yukoners!
Long-Term Employee
DNV administers various loan funds that are available to all Logan Freese entrepreneurs in its lending territory (including Northern BC residents). These pools of funds are used for short and long term loans, operating lines of credit and demand loans. The individual pools have various limits and criteria attached to After seven years Logan Freese came to the decision to move on from däna Näye Ventures. them. Any loan applications $35,000 and under have an approval process of 2 weeks or less! All Staff and management at DNV want to thank him for the years of service and wish him good luck with all of his If you have a business idea and need additional dollars to future endeavours. make it happen; call us today to see if we can help!
CANDO Conference a HUGE Success! Over 300 delegates from across Canada attended the CANDO conference here in Whitehorse this October. Congratulations to Chief Richard Sidney for his recognition as Economic Development Officer of the Year as well as the Village of Teslin who won the Community Economic Development Award.
UPCOMING EVENTS däna Näye Ventures is scheduled to close for the Christmas holidays on December 22, 2016 and will reopen on January 3, 2017. From the Management and Staff at DNV we wish you all a safe and happy holiday season!
Share the Spirit! DNV is a proud supporter of the “Share the Spirit” Christmas Program. This year DNV is sponsoring 2 families in need to ensure their Christmas is memorable and full of surprises!
What you need to know about the small business deduction Do you run a small business in Canada? You may be eligible for the small business deduction. What is the small business deduction? Eligible businesses can claim the 17.5% small business deduction on their first $500,000 of income, with some limitations. You can use the resulting tax savings to help your business grow. And the potential tax savings will increase. The small business deduction will increase from 17.5% to 19% over the next three years. It is important to make sure you are eligible before you claim the small business deduction. The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) considers the specific facts of each case in order to determine eligibility, and a reassessment may be completed to disallow the small business deduction if you are not entitled to claim it. Who can claim the deduction? To be eligible to claim the small business deduction, you must be a Canadian-controlled private corporation carrying on a business in Canada throughout the year and meet at least one of the following conditions: • • •
You primarily earn active business income rather than income from a specified investment business or a personal services business You are a specified investment business or a personal services business that employs more than five full-time employees throughout the year. You are a specified investment business and you have an associated corporation that provides managerial, financial, administrative, maintenance, or other similar services to your corporation while carrying on an active business and you would have to hire more than five full-time employees to do this work if your associated corporation did not do it.
For example, you own a small storage facility and your business is a Canadian-controlled private corporation. • •
You cannot claim the small business deduction if your storage facility primarily earns rental income and employs less than five full-time employees throughout the year You may be able to claim the small business deduction if your storage facility earns rental income with less than five full-time employees throughout the year and the business directly provides significant services that are integral to its success, such as a moving truck to transport items to the facility.
How to claim the deduction? Corporations have to file a T2 Corporation income tax return within six months of the end of their tax year. If your corporation is located in Quebec or Alberta, you have to file a separate provincial corporation return. For more information on how to claim the small business deduction, go to Chapter 4 of the T2 Corporation – Income Tax Guide.
5 Minutes for Business
Mr. Trump and the Economy: Making Bond Yields Great Again December 6, 2016
Market reaction to Mr. Trump’s victory has been mixed, but one part of the world economy is unambiguously grumpy! In the past month, a staggering $1.7 trillion has been wiped off global bond markets, surpassing the losses during the great crash of 2009. So what does it mean for Canadian business? After seven years, markets are accustomed to low interest rates—with a sluggish global economy and no signs of inflation, most central banks are struggling to provide support by keeping rates low. But the U.S. economy has been gaining strength. Third quarter GDP grew by a healthy 3.2%, while unemployment has fallen to 4.6%. Essentially, the U.S. economy is at full employment: wages shot up 5.2% in 2015 and are still rising at the fastest pace in years. That’s why markets are certain that the U.S. Fed will raise interest rates on December 14 to cool an overheating economy. And then something came along to shatter our expectations, a “yuuuge” orange surprise named Donald Trump. The trouble is Mr. Trump’s ambitious agenda—it would take an already overheating U.S. economy and pour a bunch of gasoline on it by adding the largest stimulus in U.S. history. This includes spending $1 trillion in infrastructure, reducing the corporate tax rate from 35% to 15% and lowering the top rate of personal income tax from 39% to 25%. Moody’s estimates that this would require a bonanza of borrowing, more than $8 trillion over five years, sending the U.S. debt-to-GDP ratio over 100% by 2021. Now of course we recognize that Mr. Trump is not likely to get everything he wants. Some compromise will be required for the budget to gain passage through the House and Senate. But even if they whittle his budget down significantly, investors see that the U.S. government will have to sell a massive wall of bonds next year to finance soaring deficits. That is why yields shot up so violently, the most since 2009.
Fly Like an Eagle 2.5
10-year Govt Bond Yields (%)
2 1.5 1 0.5 0 2015
USA Canada 2016
Nov. 8, 2016
Who cares if bond yields rise? We do. Canadian rates closely follow those in the U.S. More importantly, mortgage rates are linked to the 10-year bond yield, which is roughly the banks’ cost of funds to lend longterm money. That’s why U.S. mortgage rates went up by 0.5% in November, and Canadian rates gained 0.3% All this means that the Trump deficits will raise the cost of borrowing for business and consumers, a significant drag across the U.S. economy that will offset much of the stimulus. Higher interest rates will also attract capital inflows and boost the value of the U.S. dollar while anti-NAFTA threats push down the currencies of key trading partners (Mexico’s peso fell 11% while the CAD slipped 3%). This means that, in 2017, Canadian business will see stronger export demand from an over-stimulated U.S. economy and a weaker loonie. Business investment will be weak because of uncertainty surrounding NAFTA. This means producing more exports with less investment—a tall order. So buckle up because 2017 will be a wild ride for Canadian business! For more information, please contact: Hendrik Brakel Senior Director, Economic, Financial & Tax Policy 613.238.4000 (284) | hbrakel@chamber.ca
December 19, 2016
New Year’s Eve Countdown Join us on Saturday December 31! Free family activities 3-6 pm at the CGC and then the party moves to Shipyards Park from 6pm to midnight. Fireworks at 9pm and midnight! Transit shuttle available. Visit whitehorse.ca/ specialevents
Holiday Hours For City Services City Hall and other municipal office locations will be closed December 24 - 27 and 31, as well as January 1 & 2 all day. View Transit bus information at whitehorse.ca/transit Canada Games Centre hours at whitehorse.ca/cgc Shipyards Park information at whitehorse.ca/shipyardspark More details for all city facilities are at whitehorse.ca/schedules The trouble line is open outside normal office hours at 667-2111.
Seasonal Waste Management The Landfill is closed on Christmas Day and New Year's Day. On Boxing Day there will be no tipping fees for self-hauled pickup loads of residential waste, including Construction and Demolition Waste and bulky items. This excludes appliances, metals and e-waste. Visit whitehorse.ca/wmf Residential Curbside Collection is not affected by the holidays. Christmas Tree Pickup will take place starting the week of January 8, 2017. Please have your tree lying out at the curb by 7 am on Monday, January 9. Trees will be collected during the next two week period. See more at whitehorse.ca/waste
Senior Utility Rebate Seniors aged 65 or over may be eligible for this program which provides a discount from fees paid under the water, sewer and garbage services, up to a maximum of $500 per year. Visit whitehorse.ca/grants and apply before December 31.
First City Council Meeting of 2017
whitehorse.ca
The next Standing Committee Meeting is January 9 at 5:30pm in City Hall Council Chambers. View whitehorse.ca/agendas for Council and whitehorse.ca/CASM for CASM meetings.
Happy Holidays from City Council and staff!
Pathways to Wellness e-Tips conversation • connection • commitment
Contact Info: Contact us at www.yukonwellness.ca/ contactus.php
Our Location 201 - #1 Hospital Road, Whitehorse, Yukon
Meaningful Gifts Gift giving is an important part of the holiday celebrations and it's wonderful to get a gift that has been carefully selected with you in mind. But, too often we buy at the last minute, spend more than we want, and lose sight of what matters most in the rush leading up to Chrsitmas day. You can give something meaningful, use your creativity, and control your pocketbook - all at the same time! Here are some ideas to get you started: •
Offer an evening or two of babysitting for young parents • Give a used book that you've really enjoyed with a handwritten note (or book review) • Make a contribution to a local charity in the recipient's name (so they get the tax deduction!) • Make homemade granola, trail mix, or other healthy food • Be a walking buddy every Saturday morning Think about what's important to you as a gift-giver and what's important to the recipient, and the value will be about meaning instead of material goods.
Mail: Pathways to Wellness, H-1 Health and Social Services Yukon Government Box 2703, Whitehorse, Yukon Y1A 2C6 E-mail: yukonwellness@gov.yk.ca Jan: 867-667-3674