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#12 - Montreal (Courtesy of GOOD) Read more The 50 cities they selected are quite interesting; #1 Hong Kong, #2 Johannesburg and #3 Mexico City.

(Courtesy of The Globe and Mail) Weak loonie or strong loonie we get screwed I bet if C$1 = US$1.20 we would still get ripped off.

All in the balance Prix' Art Museum creates art from the landscape with panoramic views Coop Himmelb(l)au has been commissioned for the Art Museum Strongoli in Calabria, the firm's third project in Italy. The museum is not only a cultural center but also understood as a generator for a future development of Calabria, a place for cultural entertainment and recreation. Situated on the top of the “Motta Grande” hill in front of the city, the Art Museum is visible from far away, it's steely form contrasting with the lush green hillside. The new museum houses not only flexible exhibition spaces, but also a small “multi-hall” and a panorama restaurant. The project is a composition of three main elements: the emblematic, coneshaped construction with the entrance is orientated towards the city,Its spiralling ramp which gives access to the exhibition zone makes it is also a spectacular event space, while the cantilevering restaurant at the opposite end of the building offers a panoramic terrace facing the sea in the east. Both public attractors are linked by a two storey exhibition volume. The exhibition areas are determined to be as flexible as possible, supported by underground service facilities accessed via two elevators. The multi-hall can be used as temporary exhibition space, lecture hall, auditorium and cinema or simply as an extension space of the foyer for public events. http://www.worldarchitecturenews.com/index.php?fuseaction=wanappln.projectview&upload_id=11366

Au cours du mois de décembre, la balance commerciale du Canada a littéralement fondu passant d'un surplus de 1,2 milliard de dollars à un déficit de 458millions, du jamais vu au pays depuis 1976. Pour en lire plus...

No surprise here: Harper remains fiscally off balance with Quebec JEFFREY SIMPSON September 24, 2008 at 11:00 PM EDT Right there, in bold type on page 144 of the 2007 budget, the Harper government declared: "Fiscal Balance Has Been Restored." Everywhere Prime Minister Stephen Harper goes in Quebec - the issue being of interest only in that province - he affirms that "we solved the problem of the fiscal imbalance." His Quebec ministers repeat the mantra; his candidates hammer home the message. The inference: Vote for us because we handed over all that money to Quebec (and the other provinces), just as we promised in the 2006 campaign. Case closed. Except that, as anyone with the slightest sense of Quebec could have predicted, the appetite there only grows with the eating. "The fiscal imbalance, according to us, is not yet solved," proclaims Quebec Finance Minister Monique Jérôme-Forget. Things are much better, she acknowledges. But, "is it finished?" she asks. "No." Quebec Premier Jean Charest also insists more money is needed to "solve" the problem. And, by the way, how about handing over all money and federal jurisdiction over "culture and communications," so that Quebec can achieve "cultural sovereignty"? And, while you're at it, Mr. Harper, hurry up with that promise to eliminate Ottawa's power to spend any money in areas of provincial jurisdiction. Mr. Charest has learned the ways of a Quebec premier. Always demand. Never be satisfied. Keep the heat on. Position yourself as the "defender" of Quebec's interests. Insist on more money and power from Ottawa. Mr. Harper ought to have seen this coming. No federal prime minister can ever out-national the nationalists, and none can ever satisfy any premier, at least not for long. As a result, he and Mr. Charest are no longer political allies, because it does not suit Mr. Charest to be other than a demandeur. Instead, the Action Démocratique has become the Conservatives' closest political ally in Quebec, especially in the rural and small-town ridings the Conservatives target. This is the crowd that whipped up alarm over immigration. This is the party that wants a separate constitution for Quebec, talks always of "autonomy" for Quebec, wants Quebec citizenship, demands a massive transfer of power (and money, of course) from Ottawa to Quebec, and sees Canada as a very loose association of two states. Mr. Harper has never repudiated any of these demands/statements from his erstwhile allies. Mr. Harper, as is his wont, plays with slippery language in Quebec, often using the word "autonomy." Of course, he reminds everyone that he got passed the resolution describing the Québécois as a "nation" within Canada. And he brags about having "solved" the "fiscal imbalance." These ADQ/Conservative voters are exactly those for whom artists whining about cuts to their subsidies are figures of scorn. The brouhaha about Mr. Harper's $46-million in cuts to the arts goes right over their heads, or even fires them up more to support the Conservatives. Mr. Harper says his government has increased cultural spending by 8 per cent. Where he gets that number from is unknown. He did increase the Canada Council's budget over two years by $50-million, and he put $60-million into "local arts and festivals" in the 2007 budget. But the biggest increase this year was for the Francophone Summit in Quebec City, which will happen just after the election - $38-million in 2008 and $13-million in 2007. Is that culture? The $46-million cut is a drop in the bucket of the tens of billions transferred to Quebec and the other provinces to "solve" the fiscal imbalance. The attention being paid to it represents a classic example of the urgent but minor driving out the huge and important. The whole fiscal imbalance was an invention that became a mythology in Quebec: Big, bad, fat Ottawa was rolling in dough, while the poor, beleaguered provinces had too little. A commission, established under the separatist government, produced a sum it claimed would resolve the problem. But even after the Paul Martin government transferred a larger sum than the commission had demanded, the mythology held. Still more was required to solve the "problem," claimed Quebec and those provinces that clung to Quebec's coattails. Mr. Harper, fishing for votes in Quebec and desirous of slimming the federal government anyway, obliged with a cool $40-billion in transfers. "We have solved the fiscal imbalance," he proclaimed. Nice try.

Collection from a photographer in Chicago Myspace profile: http://www.myspace.com/delobbo Some of you may have seen these already but wanted to share for the rest of the class. click any pic for a larger version. I didn't use a tripod for any of these, but I did use ledges or other supporting structures to balance. As noted, many were hand-held (using burst shots). This is handy for instance when, you want to take a night shot in the middle of the street, with cars around. (EXIF for as many shots as I could find and/or applicable.) 6-shot panorama taken from Millenium Park - click for 1920px version EXIF from one of the main shots: Camera Model: Canon EOS 5D Image Date: 2008:08:27 18:51:22 Flash Used: No Focal Length: 24.0mm Exposure Time: 0.100 s (1/10) Aperture: f/2.8 ISO equiv: 125 White Balance: Auto Metering Mode: Matrix Exposure: Manual Exposure Mode: Manual The Bean, single-shot HDR from RAW - click for 1920px version Camera Model: Canon EOS 5D Image Date: 2008:08:27 18:26:29 Flash Used: No Focal Length: 48.0mm Exposure Time: 0.017 s (1/60) Aperture: f/2.8 ISO equiv: 125 White Balance: Auto Metering Mode: Matrix Exposure: Manual Exposure Mode: Manual Looking south down LaSalle Street towards the Board of Trade, Chicago. Single-shot HDR from RAW, hand-held. Camera Model: Canon EOS 5D Image Date: 2008:08:26 19:16:38 Flash Used: No Focal Length: 28.0mm Exposure Time: 0.125 s (1/8) Aperture: f/2.8 ISO equiv: 125 White Balance: Auto Metering Mode: Matrix Exposure: Manual Exposure Mode: Manual 17-shot panorama of Lake Michigan, Grant Park, Chicago Loop, looking south from 39th floor on Randolph Street. Advisable to view large (1920px) Chicago at night. You may recognize some buildings from The Dark Knight.. Camera Model: NIKON D70 Image Date: 2005:07:05 22:30:14 Flash Used: No Focal Length: 18.0mm (35mm equivalent: 27mm) Exposure Time: 0.400 s (1/3) Aperture: f/3.5 White Balance: Auto Metering Mode: Matrix downtown Chicago, by the river and Marina City, IBM building.. b/w conversion. Camera Model: NIKON D70 Image Date: 2005:07:05 22:41:31 Flash Used: No Focal Length: 18.0mm (35mm equivalent: 27mm) Exposure Time: 0.200 s (1/5) Aperture: f/3.5 White Balance: Auto Metering Mode: Matrix looking north from Roosevelt, South Loop Chicago. 3-shot panorama from single-shot RAW HDR. click for 2560px version Railyard north of Roosevelt, Chicago. Single-shot HDR. Camera Model: Canon EOS 5D Image Date: 2008:08:10 22:20:33 Flash Used: No Focal Length: 68.0mm Exposure Time: 0.200 s (1/5) Aperture: f/2.8 ISO equiv: 160 White Balance: Auto Metering Mode: Matrix Exposure: Manual Exposure Mode: Manual Navy Pier single-shot HDR panorama, Chicago. Navy Pier single-shot HDR panorama, Chicago. Made from 2 shots. 18-shot HDR (from single RAW) panorama, looking north from the Adams St bridge on the Chicago river. looking east from South Loop Chicago. 11-shot panorama (no HDR). missed a couple of shots to get a complete pano, I will most likely go back and redo this one - hopefully during more dramatic sky conditions as well. Of note, the white house towards the center of the picture is the Clarke House, which is regarded as the oldest surviving building in Chicago. Looking North down Michigan Avenue from Randolph Street. hand-held Camera Model: Canon EOS 5D Image Date: 2008:08:26 19:01:01 Flash Used: No Focal Length: 70.0mm Exposure Time: 0.050 s (1/20) Aperture: f/2.8 ISO equiv: 125 White Balance: Auto Metering Mode: Matrix Exposure: Manual Exposure Mode: Manual heading to Chicago on 94-West. single-shot HDR Camera Model: Canon EOS 5D Image Date: 2008:06:22 19:55:25 Flash Used: No Focal Length: 51.0mm Exposure Time: 0.067 s (1/15) Aperture: f/2.8 ISO equiv: 200 White Balance: Auto Metering Mode: Matrix Exposure: Manual Exposure Mode: Manual (not HDR) taken during the filming of Batman: The Dark Knight, Chicago Loop 2007. Single-shot HDR, hand-held. What you see in the middle with the spotlights surrounding it is the ramp leading to the lower level of Wacker drive - these are the scenes with the trucks going down/up the ramps and the related chase scenes. Camera Model: Canon EOS 5D Image Date: Thu Aug 23 21:21:06 2007 Focal Length: 73.0mm Exposure Time: 0.386 s (1/3) Aperture: f/4.0 ISO equiv: 100 (not HDR) Camera Model: NIKON D70 Image Date: 2005:07:03 17:54:10 Flash Used: No Focal Length: 18.0mm (35mm equivalent: 27mm) Exposure Time: 0.0031 s (1/320) Aperture: f/9.0 White Balance: Auto Metering Mode: Matrix Stormy night.. 08/23/07.. facing west from Wacker Drive. Behind glass. multiple exposure HDR (3 or 4), the spots at the top are raindrops on the window.. Looking east from Franklin Street at Delaware at 5AM. Single-shot HDR. Camera Model: Canon EOS 5D Image Date: 2008:06:22 04:17:16 Flash Used: No Focal Length: 32.0mm Exposure Time: 0.0050 s (1/200) Aperture: f/2.8 ISO equiv: 200 White Balance: Auto Metering Mode: Matrix Exposure: Manual Exposure Mode: Manual D70, 2005. note: this is one of my earlier HDR's, it is definitely on the "wilder" side.. intentionally. go Cubs! 34-shots, Canon SD550. Camera Model: Canon EOS 5D Image Date: 2008:06:22 04:30:06 Flash Used: No Focal Length: 70.0mm Exposure Time: 0.0031 s (1/320) Aperture: f/2.8 ISO equiv: 200 White Balance: Auto Metering Mode: Matrix Exposure: Manual Exposure Mode: Manual Camera Model: Canon EOS 5D Image Date: 2008:06:22 04:15:41 Flash Used: No Focal Length: 42.0mm Exposure Time: 0.0063 s (1/160) Aperture: f/2.8 ISO equiv: 200 White Balance: Auto Metering Mode: Matrix Exposure: Manual Exposure Mode: Manual multiple exposure HDR, 4 shots Camera Model: NIKON D70 Image Date: 2005:02:15 19:45:00 Flash Used: No Focal Length: 56.0mm (35mm equivalent: 84mm) Exposure Time: 0.050 s (1/20) Aperture: f/4.5 White Balance: Auto Metering Mode: Matrix Camera Model: NIKON D70 Image Date: 2005:08:28 12:28:51 Flash Used: No Focal Length: 22.0mm (35mm equivalent: 33mm) Exposure Time: 0.0031 s (1/320) Aperture: f/9.0 White Balance: Auto Metering Mode: Matrix State of Illinois building, Chicago. 3-shot HDR. Merchandise Mart, Chicago. hand-held Camera Model: NIKON D70 Image Date: 2005:07:05 22:16:28 Flash Used: No Focal Length: 24.0mm (35mm equivalent: 36mm) Exposure Time: 0.200 s (1/5) Aperture: f/3.8 White Balance: Auto Metering Mode: Matrix

Prepare for home prices to drop Most Canadian housing markets overpriced, UBC study finds With Metro Vancouver past the peak of its current real-estate market cycle, more discussion is emerging about what the cycle's downside will look like. The latest discussion points lean towards a price correction in the double digits, with one study showing current Vancouver house prices overvalued by 11 per cent on a particular measure and an economist observing that prices are falling at a rate of 10 per cent or more this year. University of B.C. real-estate economist Tsur Somerville was lead author of a study that evaluated the cost to rent a detached, mid-market home in nine Canadian cities versus the cost to own, in order to find a balanced price. The study's conclusion was that in the second-quarter of this year, Metro Vancouver's house price, of $754,500, was 11 per cent higher than the balance point. However, that is less out of balance than Regina, Winnipeg, Ottawa and Montreal, which are 25 per cent out of equilibrium, considering prices and rents in those markets. Halifax house prices are 20 per cent out of balance. Titled Are Canadian Housing Markets Overpriced? the study observes that housing affordability is a severe problem in some Canadian cities, limiting the ability of markets to continue to rise. Calgary prices showed as being seven per cent higher than balance. Only Toronto showed prices in balance with rents, and Edmonton, which has already seen price declines, would need to see prices climb again by eight per cent to be in balance. "I was surprised the Vancouver number is as low as it was," Somerville, director of the centre for urban economics and real estate at the Sauder School of Business at UBC, said in an interview. He added that the rent-versus-own measure is a narrow observation that treats homes like a financial asset and does not take other measures of affordability or valuation into account. And what eventually happens in the Vancouver market, Somerville said, will depend on a host of variables ranging from changes in mortgage rates to changes in the long-term average appreciation of housing prices and economic conditions. "What you can identify is where the pressures are," Somerville added. "How the market plays out is very different." Prices do not have to fall for the market to correct, Somerville said. Prices can simply stagnate over a period of time, like Vancouver experienced through the mid-1990s until 2001. However, Somerville added that Vancouver has built new homes at a much higher rate than household formation in the city during the up-cycle, and the inventory of unsold homes in the market has ballooned rapidly, which make Vancouver more susceptible to price declines. "Those are two big warning signs," he said. Somerville said another unknown in the declining market is what the buyers of pre-sale condominiums that are now under construction will do once the units are complete. If a significant number of investor-buyers of those condominiums decide to sell them right away, that would put more downward pressure on prices. However, at this point there is little evidence of "calamity in the housing market," said Helmut Pastrick, chief economist for Central 1 Credit Union, formerly known as Credit Union Central B.C. Pastrick said the reversal in the housing market was caused because of affordability. Too many first-time buyers were squeezed out of the market for prices to rise higher. However, "it would take nastier economic conditions," such as a recession or sudden spike in mortgage rates to cause a more serious decline in Vancouver's markets, he said. Pastrick said Vancouver's housing price index has declined four per cent since its peak in February, and in his latest weekly economic briefing, he noted that prices are on pace to drop 10 to 15 per cent this year. "I think [the decline] will be closer to 10 per cent by the end of the year," Pastrick added in an interview. "And the [decline] will be at least 10 per cent from top to bottom [of the cycle]." The inventory of unsold homes, which had grown dramatically over the summer, dropped a bit in August and Pastrick expected that trend to continue over the next several months. At some point in 2009, he believes, the real estate market will find a new balance "and we could see housing prices tread water." "I'm not suggesting [prices will be] flat," he said. "There's going to be some movement, but it could be a period of time where prices don't make large moves up or down - perhaps plus or minus five per cent a year." Pastrick said significant numbers of first-time buyers will have to be able to afford to buy homes before the market swings back up. Recent declines in prices help that affordability factor, he said, but low interest rates and solid income growth will also be needed to put the market into its next upswing. "After going through this adjustment period, which I think will run its course next year," Pastrick said, "we could be in a period of a flat market" that could last through 2010 to 2012. http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/n...7-1a4e7666c4b2

Le Québec, un peuple d'importateurs 14 septembre 2007 - 06h00 La Presse Stéphane Paquet Négative depuis 2002, elle se détériore encore. La fiche du Canadien à l'étranger? Non, plutôt celle la balance commerciale du Québec qui a pris la fâcheuse habitude de finir l'année avec une fiche sous la barre des .500. Et sans qu'on ne s'en rende compte, le Québec est devenu un peuple d'importateurs. Cliquez pour en savoir plus : Macro-économie | Économie (général) | Inflation et déflation | Marie-Christine Bernard On en convient, la balance commerciale du Québec meuble moins les conversations du samedi soir que le camp d'entraînement de la Sainte-Flanelle. Pourtant, cette balance commerciale - le total des biens et services qu'on vend à l'étranger MOINS ceux qu'on achète de l'étranger penche de plus en plus lourdement en faveur des entreprises étrangères qui nous vendent des pois, des chaises ou des ordinateurs. L'an dernier, la balance commerciale a atteint un déficit record de 8,4 milliards de dollars. Donc, en défaveur des exportateurs québécois. Pour poursuivre avec les allégories sportives, c'est 185 fois la masse salariale du Canadien. Avec tout ce fric rapatrié, la ville de Québec pourrait ravoir ses Nordiques et on pourrait même s'offrir une équipe à Sept-Îles, Trois-Pistoles, Val-d'Or, alouette Mais voilà, les gens de Québec peuvent arrêter de rêver tout de suite: les signaux voulant que la situation s'améliore à court terme sont plutôt rares. Même l'ancien premier ministre Bernard Landry, qu'on ne peut taxer de pessimisme par rapport à l'économie du Québec, reconnaît que la situation a quelque chose d'inquiétant. «L'idéal du commerce extérieur, ce n'est pas d'avoir un surplus permanent, mais ce n'est surtout pas d'avoir un déficit permanent. C'est l'équilibre, dit-il. Sur le plan structurel, c'est vrai que c'est assez inquiétant si ça continue.» L'encre rouge est réapparue dans la balance commerciale québécoise en 2003. Cette année-là, le déficit a atteint 2,2 milliards. L'année suivante, 4,89 milliards. Puis 8,4 milliards en 2005 et encore 8,4 milliards en 2006. (1) Exit, donc, l'image de ce Québec exportateur, qui vendait ses avions, son papier et son aluminium aux quatre coins du monde? En fait, la situation est plus complexe. Le Québec continue à exporter. Le problème, c'est la progression des importations qui va beaucoup plus vite. Depuis l'an 2000, les importations de biens et services ont fait un bond de 16,7%. Les exportations, à peine 6,9%. Dans son dernier budget, Québec a reconnu le malaise. «Alors que les exportations internationales de biens du Québec avaient crû en moyenne de 12% à la fin des années 90 (elles) ont en effet progressé annuellement de 3,6% en moyenne depuis 2004», peut-on lire dans le plan budgétaire déposé par Monique Jérôme-Forget. Quand Hélène Bégin, économiste au Mouvement Desjardins, regarde les données sur la balance commerciale du Québec, un fait inquiétant lui saute aux yeux: le déficit commercial du Québec semble structurel, pas seulement conjoncturel. Elle a donc sorti sa calculatrice. La Chine est à l'origine des quatre cinquièmes du déficit commercial du Québec avec l'étranger en 2006. «La majeure partie des importations de Chine, ce sont des produits de consommation courante», souligne-t-elle, énumérant sa liste: ordinateurs, équipements de télécommunication, meubles, télévisions Mme Bégin n'est pas la seule à croire que le déficit commercial du Québec n'a rien de passager. «À long terme, ça ne redeviendra pas positif», indique Marie-Christine Bernard, directrice adjointe aux prévisions provinciales du Conference Board du Canada. Elle prévoit même que la balance commerciale du Québec se détériorera encore cette année et l'an prochain. Un plongeon dans le rouge de plus de 50% en deux ans. «On a regardé les données douanières. Depuis le début de l'année, c'est très faible», dit-elle. Une hausse des importations peut être bonne pour une économie. Surtout quand elle signifie que des industriels en profitent pour améliorer leurs équipements et donc devenir plus productifs. À terme, ce nouvel équipement leur permettra de vendre leurs produits à meilleur prix et d'augmenter leur part de marché. Est-ce le cas actuellement pour le Québec? Non. En tout cas, pas dans le secteur manufacturier. Grâce à un questionnaire envoyé à 30 000 entreprises canadiennes, Statistique Canada est capable de mesurer ce qu'elles investissent pour acheter de la machinerie. Depuis 2003, dans le secteur manufacturier québécois, la baisse est constante. Si on compare les investissements de l'an dernier à ceux de l'an 2000, on peut même parler d'une dégringolade de près de deux milliards de dollars (moins 37% pour la période). Ces investissements ont atteint 3,37 milliards en 2006. Et ça, c'est sans tenir compte de l'inflation. «Il semble qu'en 2007, ça va reprendre», explique Yves Gauthier, chef de la section des dépenses en capital à Statistique Canada. Les données pour l'année en cours sont toutefois de simples prévisions. La prudence est donc de mise. D'ailleurs, le président-directeur général des Manufacturiers et exportateurs du Québec, Jean-Luc Trahan, ne voit pas non plus ses membres investir massivement dans de nouvelles machines. «En période où le dollar est haut, dit-il, le réflexe devrait être d'investir pour s'équiper, renouveler notre équipement. Maintenant, c'est basé sur une confiance de ce qui va se passer et une analyse du marché.» Bref, jusqu'à présent, le niveau de confiance n'a pas été assez grand pour pousser les manufacturiers à se lancer dans les grandes dépenses. Ce serait en train de changer, ajoute-t-il. Une nuance, toutefois, de la part de Mme Bernard, du Conference Board: outre le secteur manufacturier, les investissements demeurent importants. «D'autres secteurs investissent assez fortement», dit-elle, citant le secteur minier et Hydro-Québec. Ce sapristi huard Les causes du déficit commercial québécois sont en partie connues: hausse du dollar canadien par rapport à l'américain à cause du prix élevé du pétrole; ce même pétrole que les Québécois importent (voir le texte sur la maladie hollandaise); les difficultés du secteur aéronautique après le 11 septembre 2001; le secteur du bois qui en arrache encore; et une concurrence accrue de nouveaux acteurs comme la Chine sur le marché américain. Tout ça, alors que nos exportateurs, encore en 2006, envoyaient plus des trois quarts de leurs produits aux États-Unis. Dans une étude publiée l'automne dernier, le ministère du Développement économique, de l'Innovation et de l'Exportation (DEIE) conclut que la hausse des exportations québécoises sur le marché américain «s'explique en totalité par la croissance de la demande américaine». Autrement dit, si les entreprises québécoises y ont vendu plus de produits pendant les années 90, c'est parce que l'économie américaine tournait plus vite et non parce que les entreprises du Québec ont arraché des parts de marché à d'autres acteurs. Leur part de la tarte totale des importations américaines a même diminué à partir de 1998. «Ainsi, la part du Québec dans les importations américaines passe de 3,3% en 1991 à 3,4% en 1998. Toutefois, dans la foulée du dégonflement de la bulle technologique à partir de 2001, de la remontée du dollar canadien depuis 2003 et de la poussée des ventes des pays émergents, la part du Québec chute, passant de 3,4% en 1998 à 2,8% en 2004.» Pour cette année, les données ne sont guère plus réjouissantes. En mai, Québec prévoyait que les exportations, bénéficiant «d'une certaine stabilité du dollar canadien», devaient s'accroître de 2,9% en 2007. Le chiffre n'a pas encore été révisé officiellement, mais un haut fonctionnaire du ministère des Finances reconnaît aujourd'hui que «depuis le début de l'année, ça (les exportations) n'a pas été fort». Bref, comme le disent si justement les partisans du Canadien, si on veut que la puck se remette à rouler pour nous autres, il va falloir jouer plus fort dans les coins.