Canada

The number of consumer insolvencies in Alberta jumped almost 30 per cent in July from year-ago levels, reports the Office of the Superintendent of Bankruptcy Canada, The Calgary Herald reported. Statistics released Wednesday reveal 824 insolvency filings, a 28.3 per cent increase from July 2014. The number of bankruptcies rose 19.3 per cent to 353. Bankruptcy proposals, where an offer to creditors is made to settle debts, soared 36.1 per cent, to 471.

Canada’s Liberal Party, which has positioned itself with a legitimate shot to win the country’s Oct. 19 election, unveiled Saturday its fiscal and economic platform in an effort to counter claims from rivals that its campaign promises pose a danger to the federal budget, The Wall Street Journal reported. Among the three main political parties, the Liberals have made the biggest gains in public-opinion polls since the start of the election campaign in early August—and the economy has been a prominent focus.

Salaried employees and retirees of U.S. Steel Canada Inc. want the Ontario Superior Court to order the steel maker’s parent to halt any moves to shift steel production out of Canada until after a mediation session, The Globe and Mail reported. A plan by United States Steel Corp. to shift production of high value-added steel from Hamilton and Nanticoke, Ont., to U.S. mills has brought a year-long battle between the Pittsburgh-based giant and its stakeholders to a head.

U.S. Steel Canada Inc. will seek a court order to continue restructuring under court protection beyond this year, the company said Thursday, the Financial Post reported on a Canadian Press story. The former Stelco Inc., purchased by U.S. Steel in 2007, has been operating under Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act protection since September 2014, and it was most recently extended until Dec. 11, 2015.

Household debt in Canada hit a record high in the second quarter, as borrowing accelerated at a quicker pace than after-tax income growth, the Wall Street Journal reported today. The bulk of the new borrowing was for mortgages as consumers took advantage of a surprise rate cut by the Bank of Canada in January, the first of two cuts this year aimed at boosting an economy bruised by a commodity-price rout.

Pascan Aviation (P6, Québec) has filed for creditor protection under Canada's Companies' Creditors Arrangement Act (CCAA). Similar to a US Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing, the move will allow the distressed carrier to continue operating while restructuring its business, ch-aviation reported. A Superior Court of Quebec docket indicates Pascan's creditors - Business Development Bank of Canada and Investissement Quebec - are providing a total of USD1 million to support the Pascan Companies' recovery plan.

A technical recession, but not an “outright recession.” That is the verdict from economists Tuesday after Statistics Canada reported that the Canadian economy shrank at an annual rate of 0.5 per cent in the second quarter, following a 0.8 per cent decline (revised from an earlier figure of 0.6 per cent) in the first three months of the year, the Financial Post reported. A technical recession is defined as two consecutive quarters of negative growth.

Regional airline Pascan Aviation has filed for creditor protection but says it will honour reservations and tickets as it continues to restructure its business in parts of Quebec and Atlantic Canada, CTV News reported on a Canadian Press story. Pascan says two government agencies are providing a total of $1 million in financial support while Pascan operates under the Companies' Creditors Arrangement Act. The airline provides 40 daily flights to 12 airports in Quebec, New Brunswick and Newfoundland and Labrador using eight to 10 of its fleet of 23 small turboprop aircraft.

Toronto’s housing market faces a high risk of a correction as soaring home prices have outstripped income growth even as the city is facing a rising supply of unsold condos, Canada’s federal housing agency warned, The Globe and Mail reported. In a new quarterly forecast on the housing market, Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. said it is upgrading the risk of “problematic conditions” in the country’s largest housing market to “high” from “moderate” because it saw evidence the market was heating up this year even though home prices are already overpriced.

Canadian women's fashion retailer Laura's Shoppe, which owns Laura, Laura Petites and Melanie Lyne, has filed for creditor protection, CBC.ca reported. The company, with more than 150 stores across the country, said it expects to close some underperforming stores but plans to keep doing business as usual while it restructures. Laura admits it experienced large losses in 2012 and 2013, but president Kalman Fisher said sales have since rebounded. A filing under the Companies' Creditors Arrangement Act protects the retailer from claims by creditors while it revamps its operations.