
BC Economy
CPAs are on the front lines of business in this province, and they see firsthand what issues are affecting investment and the economy. CPABC provides CPAs and the public with timely economic updates and analysis on British Columbia as a place to WORK, INVEST, and LIVE.
BC Check-Up Invest
The 2022 BC: Check-Up Invest report focuses on investment trends across the province and in each of the province’s seven development regions. The report finds that in 2021, key investment indicators such as business activity, housing starts, and major project investment returned to or exceeded pre-pandemic levels. However, challenges remain, including a sustained decline in private non-residential investment, weakened GDP-per-person, and expanded government debt.
BC Check-up Work
The 2021 BC: Check-Up Work report focuses on employment trends across the province and in each of the province’s seven development regions.
The report examines labour trends in BC a year-and-a-half after the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in record job losses. The report finds that BC’s workforce is now larger than it was before the pandemic due to strong employment gains made over the past year. However, our unemployment rate remains relatively high, and employment performance varies largely by industry and region across BC.
BC Check-Up Live
The 2021 BC: Check-Up Live report focuses on demographic and housing activity across the province and in each of the province’s seven regional developments.
BC Check-Up: Live focuses on the impact of travel restrictions during the COVID-19 pandemic—specifically, how these restrictions affected migration patterns and stunted BC’s previously rapid population growth. The report also examines demographic trends, including how the average age of British Columbians continues to rise. Finally, it assesses housing affordability, highlighting the surging cost of residential real estate, the lag in housing supply, and the increasing disparity between family income and housing prices.

An economic update on consumer spending, growing labour shortages, and inflationary and interest rate pressures.

ESG has gone from being an area of focus for a small number of organizations to something that is very mainstream. And we have seen an incredible shift towards ESG, both in terms of society at large, and also businesses seeing ESG as fundamental to how they operate and how they engage with their stakeholders. It’s fair to say that ESG is now business-critical and that recognition is becoming more and more widespread.


CPABC’s latest report highlights strong investment recovery across BC, but challenges remain




As 2021 came to an end, BC’s unemployment rate stood at 5.3% in December. That was a small decline from 5.6% in November and well below the 8.0% rate at the start of 2021.

How a radical business model is changing the goal for business



The issue of inflation continues to be significant for employee benefits, as there continues to be pressure on businesses to maintain these plans.

CPABC's BC Check-Up: Work report looks at emerging employment trends across the province.


According to the BC Check-Up: Work, an annual report by the Chartered Professional Accountants of British Columbia (CPABC) on employment trends across the province, B.C.’s unemployment rate was 5.9 per cent in September 2021, down from 8.6 per cent in September 2020.

CPABC’s 2022-2023 Budget Submission recommends the province focus on tax and program reform to improve our province’s productivity.



BC Check-Up: Live report looks at demographic and affordability trends across the province









In the years leading up to 2020, Greater Victoria’s investment activity was thriving with a growing number of active businesses, strong housing starts, and robust economic growth. Unfortunately, the region’s economy took a significant dip due to the COVID-19 pandemic.


For the eighth consecutive month, BC’s workforce expanded in December. However, the most recent data shows that BC’s growth rate continues to slow considerably from rates seen earlier in the recovery, and for the first time since April, Canada as a whole saw an employment loss.



An update on anti-money-laundering initiatives
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According to the BC Check-Up: Work, an annual report by the Chartered Professional Accountants of British Columbia (CPABC) on employment trends across the province, Southwest B.C.’s unemployment rate hit 12.3 per cent in the Summer of 2020 (June to August).















The Chartered Professional Accountants of British Columbia (CPABC) commends the government for achieving a balanced budget while still investing in social and capital projects.







Export of goods and services make up 38 per cent of B.C.’s real Gross Domestic Product (GDP). As exports are a vital part of our economy, it is crucial that we continue to focus on exploring and diversifying our export products and markets.






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