Extreme weather events like fires, floods, heat waves and droughts pose an increasing risk to Canada’s food supply chain, putting pressure on prices all the way to the grocery store shelf, say experts. “Anytime you have major weather-related events, it tends to increase costs,” said Frank Scali, vice-president of industry affairs at Food, Health & … Read more
Cost of Living9:09Is it time to retire the seniors’ discount? Whether she’s attending a chamber performance or playing in one, cellist and teacher Laura Backstrom says one thing is pretty consistent — the audience “looks like a sea of white hair,” she says. In contemplating why that is, Backstrom, 60, said she initially thought it was because seniors … Read more
The harassment members of Parliament experience from the public has jumped almost 800 per cent in the last five years, according to the person in charge of security in the House of Commons. Patrick McDonell, sergeant-at-arms and corporate security officer, told a committee of MPs studying the House harassment policy Tuesday that the spike was driven by … Read more
The man at the centre of the pandemic meme stock craze appeared online for the first time in three years, sending the prices of three quirky and volatile shares sharply higher Monday. Keith Gill, better known as “Roaring Kitty,” posted an image Sunday on the social media platform X, formerly Twitter, of a man sitting … Read more
Here’s the good news: Airfares have declined in Canada. The bad news? You might wind up paying more in added fees. WestJet and several U.S. airlines recently hiked their checked bag charges. Discount carrier Flair Airlines has raised some other fees, and added a surcharge when customers pay for their flight with a credit card. Airlines often say they “unbundle” … Read more
Amid high inflation, rising operating costs and shrinking Canadian demand, clothing designers in Nova Scotia say they’re struggling to find a sustainable business model. Designers say they’ve had to adjust to significant changes in consumer behaviour, supply chain disruptions and inflation as they’ve navigated through the COVID-19 pandemic and its aftermath. “We’ve made a lot of hard decisions. … Read more
For a third straight time, the U.S. Federal Reserve kept its key interest rate unchanged Wednesday, as it signalled its expectations to make a series of quarter-point cuts to the benchmark interest rate next year. Those envisioned rate cuts — which wouldn’t likely begin until the second half of 2024 — suggest officials think high borrowing rates … Read more
Health Minister Mark Holland signalled Tuesday the government is unlikely to meet the end-of-the-year deadline imposed by the NDP for passing pharmacare legislation — a condition of the supply-and-confidence agreement that was struck to keep the Liberals in power until 2025. Holland said talks are ongoing with NDP MP Don Davies, the party’s health critic, … Read more
