More layoffs in Alberta’s oil and gas sector are on the horizon in 2016 as the NDP government looks to weather the economic downturn.

With the price of West Texas Intermediate crude oil hovering at just over $35 US per barrel on Wednesday, Energy Minister Marg McCuaig-Boyd said the private sector has advised government that there will be more layoffs in the early 2016.

“I’m always hoping for a rebound. Hopefully the price picks up but unfortunately, we’re in for more layoffs as well. Some companies are giving us a heads up. I’m hoping by mid-next year things will start to pick up,” she said.

McCuaig-Boyd said the government will be announcing the results of its royalty review early next month and “hopefully out of the royalty review there will be some of those economic diversification pieces we can explore.”

Economic Development and Trade Minister Deron Bilous said diversification is his “top priority”.

“While the price of oil is low, that means that feedstock is cheaper and so there are ways that we can leverage both upstream and downstream,” he said. “Within the other sectors that are priorities — agriculture, forestry, tourism — we’re looking at ways that we can leverage but also increase (those industries) so market access is one of my big priorities moving into 2016.”

Bilous said the government is planning more trade missions next year with a focus on Asia. There will also be a greater emphasis on innovation, he said, with the government looking to partner with entrepreneurs to “take their ideas, move them to a product and work through that commercialization process.”

Education and Culture Minister David Eggen said “we hope for the best but plan for the worst, really.”

“I run the second-biggest budget ministry in the government and it’s very important for us at each turn to look for efficiencies in all ministries and the ones that I’m responsible for,” he said, adding the recent establishment of a two-table baragining framework between school boards and teachers gives the government “a close hand on the purse strings.”

All three ministers are members of the NDP government’s Economic Policy Committee, which met Wednesday afternoon.

5 Economic Indicators to Watch in 2016:

Oil Price:With the government losing roughly $250 million in revenue every time the per-barrel price of West Texas Intermediate drops by $1 US, any rebound would boost Alberta’s coffers. The WTI price hovered at just $35 US per barrel on Wednesday. Moody’s Investors Services recently lowered its WTI price assumption for 2016 from $48 to $40 per barrel.

Jobs:Alberta lost 63,500 jobs in the first eight months of this year, according to government data. The losses were the largest since the global economic crisis in 2009. Combined with decreased employment, the average weekly pay in Alberta fell 2.6 per cent to $1,129 over the 12 months ended in August, according to Statistics Canada.

Housing: The Canadian Real Estate Association expects average house prices to fall by 2.5 per cent in 2016 while house prices in Saskatchewan are expected to decline by 1.2 per cent and by one per cent in Newfoundland and Labrador. Canada’s national average house price, however, is expected to edge higher by 1.4 per cent in the year ahead, to $448,700.

Minimum Wage:In September, the NDP government increased Alberta’s minimum wage from $10.20 an hour to $11.20 as well as liquor servers’ minimum rate from $9.20 to $10.70 as the first step in their plan to reach a $15 minimum wage by 2018. A recent internal government report suggested that further increases could mean job losses.

Carbon Tax:The NDP government announced their plan for a $20 per tonne carbon tax in January 2017 increasing to $30 per tonne in January 2018. The plan is expected to raise $3 billion for the government annually.

matthew.dykstra@sunmedia.ca

@SunMattDykstra