If there was any doubt the COVID-19 pandemic was having an impact on the local economy, the city’s most recent Economic Outlook put those doubts to rest.
According to the report, which gathers data from a variety of sources, the unemployment rate in Prince George in April 2020 hit 10.1 per cent, almost double from the 5.7 unemployment rate in April 2019. The good news is that Prince George’s unemployment rate is lower than the province (11.5 per cent) and the country (13.5) for April.
The Cariboo Economic Development Region had 71,200 people employed in April, down 8,600 jobs.
The total value of building permits issued in Prince George through the end of April 2020 reached $2.7 million, down from the $17.6 million in April 2019. Residential permits saw a large decrease in April 2020 compared to the same month in 2019. There were increases in commercial and institutional permits in 2020. Building permits are now $10.7 million behind the year-to-date figures compared to the previous year.
There were 73 new business licence applications in April 2020 compared to only 38 in March 2020.
The Prince George Airport reported 42,911 passengers going through the airport in April 2019. In April of this year there was a 95.57 per cent decrease with 1,899 passengers arriving and departing.
There were 27 homes sold in April 2020. That represents a 233 per cent decrease in homes sold between the two periods with 90 homes sold in April 2019.
The average house sale price was $387,346 in April, 2020. There was an increase compared to last April when there was an average house sale price of $370,101.
There were 11 more single family dwelling starts in April, 2019 compared to this April when there were only eight starts.