TOP STORY
LNG Canada makes it OFFICIAL: $32B Phase 2 Gets Green Light
LNG Canada and its partners (Shell, Petronas, PetroChina, Mitsubishi and KOGAS) approved Phase 2 this week, a $32 billion private investment that doubles Kitimat's export capacity to 28 million tonnes a year. Per the project's own numbers, construction peaks at about 4,000 jobs in Kitimat, with another 2,100 on new Coastal GasLink compressor stations. Twelve months from referral to the Major Projects Office to a final investment decision is a real change from the decade-long slogs we’re used to, and the federal government deserves credit for it. This is private money, not a government handout, and it lands in a country where monthly GDP was flat in July and manufacturing is shrinking. The test now is delivery: contractors need skilled labour, predictable permitting and a government that doesn’t move the goalposts mid-build. Every project that clears this fast makes the case for doing the same for the rest of the list, from Roberts Bank Terminal 2 to the next pipeline.
THE NUMBERS — STATISTICS CANADA
GDP by Industry, July 2026 — Real GDP was flat (0.0%), but construction rose 1.3%, its fourth straight monthly gain. Non-residential building jumped 2.9% (the biggest gain since January 2022, helped by an Ontario hospital build), engineering construction rose 1.5% and residential gained 0.9%. Manufacturing fell 0.9% and mining and oil and gas extraction slipped 0.5%. The advance estimate for August is +0.2%. Statistics Canada
FROM THE ECONOMISTS
ATB Economics — Flat spot — Calls construction the “bright spot” in July's GDP. ATB sees Alberta growing 2.6% this year against 0.9% nationally, on lighter tariff exposure and steady population growth, easing to 2.3% in 2027.
WORTH WATCHING
Bank of Canada, October 28 — The next call comes with a full Monetary Policy Report. Markets have treated a rate hike as close to a coin flip, with inflation stuck at 3.0%. A hike would hit leveraged builders and developers already facing soft housing demand.
August GDP, October 30 — Statistics Canada's early read says +0.2%. Watch whether construction's four-month run holds as housing starts sit near multi-month lows.
IN BRIEF
BNN Bloomberg — Soft economy should limit Bank of Canada's rate hikes: Capital Economics Capital Economics expects just two quarter-point hikes, to 2.75% next year, well short of what markets price, with U.S. tariffs and weak population growth holding inflation down.
COFFEE & CONSTRUCTION
Every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, ICBA's Jordan Bateman serves up a 10-minute rundown of the news facing BC and Alberta construction on the Coffee & Construction podcast. Catch the latest episode: C&C #36: A Potash Pot of Port Money. Subscribe free on YouTube (@ICBATV), ICBA's socials, or wherever you download podcasts.