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Vancouver Sun
a day ago
- Politics
- Vancouver Sun
Opinion: Just as B.C. has less water to make electricity, we have more demand for clean energy
If you're like most people, you flick the light switch without giving much thought to how the electricity gets to your home and turns on the lights. And like most British Columbians, you pay your bill every month to B.C. Hydro unless you are in another service territory like me — I pay Nelson Hydro. Day in and day out, most of us don't consider much more than this when it comes to what's powering up our communities. Those of us who work to keep our electrical system dependable like that you can trust us. But for a moment, let's say you wanted to nerd out with us. We'd love that too. Because we all think that working in this energy transition is amazing and we're pretty happy to get noticed. A daily roundup of Opinion pieces from the Sun and beyond. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder. The next issue of Informed Opinion will soon be in your inbox. Please try again Interested in more newsletters? Browse here. For my part, I've gone from being B.C.'s minister for energy to now working in the private sector with Energy Storage Canada. Since walking into that minister's office in 2017, I've believed that B.C. can be a clean powerhouse for Western Canada. However, the parameters to making that happen have changed since then. What we believed to be true and the forecasts we made at the time have taken other directions. Maybe I should have known better, maybe experts should have known better just eight years ago, but hindsight is always 20/20. The biggest change is the impact of global warming. As I wrote last year, snowpacks have been the lowest on record for several years, with 2023/24 the lowest. This year isn't much better. I could tell while paddling the shores of Kootenay Lake or after camping last weekend on Arrow Lake — two key reservoirs in the Columbia Basin system that generates nearly 50 per cent of B.C.'s electricity — that things are worse than expected eight years ago. But the B.C. government's May 15 Snow Survey and Water Supply Bulletin says it best: 'Low snowpack, early snowmelt and warm seasonal weather forecasts are pointing towards elevated drought hazards for this upcoming season.' Once again, that means less water to generate electricity and another year where B.C. Hydro is projecting to be a net importer of power. Just as B.C. has less water to make electricity, we have more demand for it. Electric vehicles, more electric home appliances and tools, more computers and data centres, major industry wanting to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions with clean electricity. You name it. The demand for clean power is escalating as we all want to do our part to reduce our impact on climate change — the very reason we have less hydro-power capacity. It's great to see demand for clean power grow, but how are we going to meet it when supply is less? Luckily, B.C. has many resources to generate clean electricity. In the last few years, there has been an incredible amount of innovation to capitalize on these resources in a way that minimizes environmental impact. Power generation and storing renewable energy for later use is advancing. Not only do I see it every day in my work with B.C.-based researchers and businesses, but the International Energy Agency stated that grid-scale 'battery storage is the fastest growing clean energy technology on the market' in their 2024 World Energy Outlook Special Report: Batteries and Secure Energy Transitions. Governments at all levels see this advancement too. With the launch of the Clean Power Action Plan, the current B.C. government and B.C. Hydro are opening a second call for power. The clean energy industry and First Nations are poised to respond again, as was evident at the Clean Energy B.C. Generate conference this month. Energy conservation remains a critical component to keep bills affordable and address the situation of high demand and a decreasing supply. Every utility in B.C. has plans to help customers reduce energy as well as improve infrastructure for efficiencies. But there is a new fly in the ointment that I didn't foresee in 2017 as a new energy minister, nor did I predict last year when writing about our energy situation. The U.S. Trump administration's threats and trade wars since last fall, before he was even in office, have turned reliable energy relationships and trade via B.C. Hydro's Powerex upside down. Powerex has long bought low-cost solar power from places like California and Nevada and sold them hydro power at night. Now, this relationship doesn't feel as secure. This means that any response to meeting clean energy needs must also focus on building greater connections between Canadian jurisdictions. The government of Canada's speech from the throne delivered by King Charles III prioritized such nation-building projects earlier in the week, while the governments of B.C. and Yukon have already signed an agreement to integrate their electricity grids for greater reliability. A lot is happening in the world of electricity right now. However, some worry that it's not happening fast enough. My guess is that the current B.C. Minister of Energy Adrian Dix agrees. His key word for the work he has to do is 'urgent' as he finds ways to streamline oversight and permitting to get things done. Because, after all, you expect the lights to go when you flick the switch.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Consumer Sentiment Held Steady in May As Tariff Uncertainty Persists
The Michigan Consumer Sentiment Index improved from its mid-May preliminary reading to 52.2, matching April's results. Inflation expectations moved lower as consumers factored in President Donald Trump's move to reduce tariffs on China temporarily. While consumers felt better about the short-term economic outlook, they were more worried about wages and remained pessimistic about long-term economic freefall in sentiment leveled off in May as consumers worried less about price increases from tariffs, but still felt uneasy about the economic outlook. The final Michigan Consumer Sentiment Index for May improved slightly from the preliminary results released two weeks ago to 52.2, matching the final results from April. The reading ends four straight months of declines for the closely watched consumer survey. The improved sentiment reflected President Donald Trump's move on May 12 to temporarily reduce tariffs on China to 30% from 145%. It shadows a similar improvement in the Conference Board's Consumer Confidence report, which rose by more than 12 points in May on the temporary tariff truce. Consumers also felt a little better about inflation at the end of the month, with year-ahead expectations for price increases coming in at 6.6%, lower than the preliminary reading but higher than April's inflation expectations. Long-term inflation expectations ticked lower in the report. 'In the second half of the month, sentiment lifted and inflation expectations eased in the wake of the May 12 pause on some tariffs on goods from China,' said Joanne Hsu, director of the University of Michigan Survey of Consumers. 'With continued policy uncertainty, however, consumers continue to expect an economic slowdown to come.' Uncertainty has spread since consumers were asked about their outlook. Courts have gotten involved in tariffs, and Trump has called the tariff pause on Chinese goods into question. While expected short-term business conditions improved, likely from the pause in tariffs, they were offset by declines in consumers' current personal finances that stemmed from stagnant wages, the report said. About 64% of consumers said they expect business conditions to worsen in the year ahead, the same as last month, but more than double the 29% who expressed similar concerns six months ago. 'Consumers still expect the economy to weaken and foresee weaker business conditions and income growth as they express ongoing frustration with the cost of living,' said Oren Klachkin, financial market economist for Nationwide. 'However, the survey suggests consumer attitudes may improve if trade deals are announced and tariff uncertainty diminishes.' The report continued to show the separation between 'hard' and 'soft' data as economic indicators like retail sales remained strong despite consumers raising worries about the economy. 'While the soft data continue to cast an unfavorable light, the hard data paint a comparatively better picture,' Klachkin said. 'Developments on the tariff front will likely continue to shape consumer attitudes.' Read the original article on Investopedia Sign in to access your portfolio
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Bond Traders See Treasuries Selloff Going Even Further
(Bloomberg) -- Traders rattled by the rout in long-dated Treasuries are turning more bearish as yields continue to oscillate around a key 5% psychological threshold. NYC Congestion Toll Brings In $216 Million in First Four Months NY Wins Order Against US Funding Freeze in Congestion Fight A JPMorgan Chase & Co. survey of traders released Wednesday spotlighted that investors expect the selloff to worsen, keeping yields elevated in the $29 trillion Treasury market. The survey's all-client category for outright short positions — which includes central banks, sovereign wealth funds, real money and speculative traders — has climbed to the most since around mid-February. The bearish sentiment comes on the tail of a decline in global long-dated bonds as investors grow concerned about widening government fiscal deficits. The US 30-year yield is lingering around 4.97% after soaring last week to 5.15%, the highest since October 2023, amid the US losing its top credit score, a steep selloff in Japan's super-long bonds and the passing of President Donald Trump's tax-bill in the House. Long-bonds got some relief Tuesday as a global debt rally sent benchmark yields tumbling. However, the 30-year yield still hovering around 5% signals investors remain fickle. That's being expressed in the options market too, where traders are paying higher premiums to hedge an extended selloff in long-bond futures versus a rally. 'This is a global steepening of the yield curve,' said Leah Traub, a portfolio manager at Lord Abbett & Co. 'There are a lot of different nuances to the same story, which is that demand for longer-term securities is diminishing at the same time as supply is growing. That's going to put pressure on the long end of all these curves.' Meanwhile, a five-year note auction that drew record indirect demand Wednesday and a two-year auction Tuesday that was also well-received further underscore the disparity between investor interest for shorter-dated debt compared to long-bonds. Traders will next turn their focus to a $44 billion seven-year note sale on Thursday. Here's a rundown of the latest positioning indicators across the rates market: JPMorgan Treasury Client Survey In the week up to May 27, investor outright short positions increased by 2 percentage points to the most since Feb. 10. The net long position now sits at the least since Feb. 3. Most Active SOFR Options Across SOFR options out to the Dec25 tenor, the 94.875 strike has been active over the past week. That's largely down to the flows, including a large buyer of SFRZ5 95.375/94.875 1x2 put spreads, which also accounts for the gains in open interest seen over the past week in the 95.375 strike. The 96.50 strike was also well traded due to flows, including an outright buyer of Jun25 calls over the past week at half-tick. Over the past week, a decent amount of liquidation was seen in the 95.75 strike with both Jun25 puts and Sep25 puts seeing a large drop in open interest. SOFR Options Heatmap The 95.75 strike remains the second most-populated strike despite a decent amount of liquidation seen over the past week. The 95.625 strike is now most populated in tenors across Jun25, Sep25 and Dec25 options, mostly due to large positioning around the Jun25 puts via the SFRM5 95.75/95.625 put spread, which has recently traded. The top three most-populated strikes still contain a large amount of June 2025 put exposure. Treasury Options Skew Traders are continuing to pay increasing premiums to hedge a selloff in the long-bond contracts on both an outright basis and versus the front and belly of the curve. That comes as 30-year yields oscillate at a 5% handle over the past week, touching as high as 5.15% on May 22, helped by a soft 20-year bond sale last week. The skew toward puts in the long-bond contract is now the most in about a month. CFTC Futures Positioning For the second week in a row, asset managers aggressively de-leveraged net long positioning in Treasury futures, CFTC data up to May 20 shows. Over the week, asset managers unwound about 168,000 10-year note futures equivalents to the net duration long, following around 214,000 10-year note futures equivalents the week before. The largest amount of de-risking was seen in the ultra 10-year note futures, where about $5.1 million per basis point of long liquidation was seen on the week. --With assistance from Carter Johnson. Mark Zuckerberg Loves MAGA Now. Will MAGA Ever Love Him Back? Millions of Americans Are Obsessed With This Japanese Barbecue Sauce YouTube Is Swallowing TV Whole, and It's Coming for the Sitcom Inside the First Stargate AI Data Center How Coach Handbags Became a Gen Z Status Symbol ©2025 Bloomberg L.P. Sign in to access your portfolio
The Hindu
3 days ago
- Business
- The Hindu
Examining the RBI's remittances survey
Remittances have long played a quiet but crucial role in India's external sector balance, but in terms of policy attention, they have often been overshadowed by indicators such as foreign direct investment (FDI) and trade flows. Yet the latest data from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI)'s Sixth Round of India's Remittances Survey, released in March, makes it clear that such flows are integral to the stability and structure of India's external accounts. Inward remittances stood at a record $118.7 billion in 2023-24, not only exceeding FDI inflows but also financing over half of India's merchandise trade deficit. India's persistently high remittance flows constitute a vital stabilising force in the context of global economic uncertainty and tightening financial conditions. Structural shifts However, the data also point to deeper structural shifts that merit closer attention. The most striking is the changing spatial composition of remittance sources. The traditional dominance of countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) is now giving way to advanced economies (AEs). The U.S. accounts for 27.7% of India's inward remittances, up from 23.4% reported in the Fifth Round (2020-21) Survey. The U.S., U.K., Canada, Australia, and Singapore together account for 51.2% of the flows, overtaking the cumulative share of the six GCC nations (37.9%) by a large margin. This inversion of a historical pattern reflects not only macroeconomic shifts but also a change in the profile of Indian migrants — from predominantly low-skilled workers in West Asia to high-skilled professionals and students in AEs. This has long-term implications for both the volume and stability of remittance inflows. Migrants in AEs tend to have higher and more stable earnings, and their remittance behaviour is often less sensitive to cyclical volatility in commodity markets. At the same time, unlike temporary workers in the Gulf, high-skilled emigrants in AEs may remit less as their economic and familial integration abroad deepens. One concern is the growing concentration of large-value transactions. In 2023-24, transfers above ₹5 lakh accounted for nearly 29% of total remittance value, even though they represented a small fraction (1.4%) of overall transactions. This skew suggests that remittances are increasingly driven by higher-earning, professionally mobile Indians rather than broad-based migrant remitters. While this may reflect the upward mobility of the diaspora, it also creates potential vulnerabilities. A slowdown in high-skilled migration due to adverse host-country immigration policy shifts could affect these large inflows disproportionately. There is also an accelerating shift toward digital modes of remittance. In 2023-24, digital channels, on average, accounted for 73.5% of all remittance transactions. Transaction costs have correspondingly declined. The average cost of sending $200 to India now stands at 4.9%, below the global average of 6.65%, though still above the Sustainable Development Goal benchmark of 3%. This progress is impressive and attributable to the rise of fintech platforms and app-based money transfer services. Despite this aggregate progress, the transition to digital channels has not been uniform across remittance corridors. While migrants in countries such as the UAE (76.1%) and Saudi Arabia (92.7%) have recorded a very high share of remittance transfers via digital channels, others such as those in Canada(40%), Germany (55.1%), and Italy (35%) continue to depend more heavily on conventional methods. These disparities suggest that the infrastructure and regulatory environment remain a binding constraint. For India, the policy challenge lies in deepening cross-border digital payment linkages. Doing so will not only lower costs and increase efficiency but also ensure that remittance flows remain within formal, trackable financial channels. At the sub-national level, the remittance map shows persistent asymmetries. Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, and Rajasthan received a total share of under 6% of remittances, while Maharashtra, Kerala, and Tamil Nadu received about 51%. This is not merely a reflection of historical out-migration patterns but of unequal access to migration-enabling infrastructure: foreign language training, credentialing pathways, and employer linkages remain thin. National skilling missions must become far more State-responsive; else, India risks perpetuating remittance elite-regions and households with the social capital to migrate and the financial literacy to leverage returns, while leaving the rest behind. Missing data Notably, this round does not provide data on how remittances are used at the household level. This limits a fuller understanding of the developmental role of remittances beyond their macroeconomic contribution to the balance of payments. As the profile of migrants shifts towards higher-skilled occupations and as transaction sizes become more concentrated at the upper end, it is crucial to assess whether these flows are being directed towards longer-term financial goals such as savings, investment, or asset creation or continue to be primarily consumption-smoothing in nature. Incorporating this dimension would also help inform the design of complementary instruments — savings-linked remittance products, targeted financial literacy programmes, or investment incentives for remittance-receiving households — that can enhance the long-run developmental multiplier of these inflows. Amarendu Nandy, Assistant Professor (Economics Area) at the Indian Institute of Management Ranchi. Views are personal
Time of India
5 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
Over four lakh property owners in Bengaluru under scanner for evading tax notices
BENGALURU : The Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike ( BBMP ) is preparing to issue notices to over four lakh property owners who are suspected of evading property tax by furnishing incorrect details about their properties. This action follows a detailed analysis based on data from the Digitally Owned Number (DON) Survey. Despite there being more than 20 lakh properties within BBMP limits, the civic body is currently collecting just under Rs 5,000 crore annually in property tax—far below potential collections. Officials have observed that a significant number of property owners have exploited the self-declaration system, underreporting property size to reduce their tax liability. Drone survey and satellite data An official said, 'To counter this, BBMP's revenue department has now turned to data collected from the Drone survey and UPR (Urban Property Ownership Records), which cover details of around 15 lakh properties. In addition, BBMP has collected GPS-based photos and data for each property. These are being matched with ownership records and supporting documents, including those submitted for e-Khata registration, to identify discrepancies. If mismatches are found—such as undeclared floor space or incorrect height and number of floors—property owners will receive formal notices.' Notices likely from June 1 Source said that with a target of collecting Rs 6,000 crore in property tax for the 2025-26 fiscal year, BBMP is offering a 5% rebate for those who pay their dues by May 31. From June onward, BBMP will begin issuing notices ward-wise to defaulters and long-term evaders. In extreme cases, officials said, properties may even be seized or auctioned. Automatic notices via SMS An official added, 'BBMP is also developing technology that will allow automatic issuance of notices via SMS to the registered mobile numbers of property owners who provided false information on the BBMP property tax portal. Officials confirmed to Kannada Prabha that around 4 lakh such cases have already been identified, and notices will be sent out shortly.' Rs 1,000 cr in additional tax recovery expected According to BBMP officials, the revenue department has so far identified four lakh properties with incorrect self-declarations. With more under scrutiny, BBMP anticipates recovering an additional Rs 1,000 crore in property tax and penalties in the coming months. As of Sunday, BBMP has collected Rs 2,036 crore in property tax. With just a few days left in May, the civic body is aiming to cross the Rs3,000 crore mark before the rebate window closes.
