Mastermind Toys customers warned to use gift cards by Dec. 24 as company is set to change hands

Mastermind Toys shoppers have less than a week to redeem store gift cards.  The Canadian toy retailer announced earlier this month that it had signed an asset purchase agreement with Unity Acquisitions Inc.  Mastermind filed for creditor protection under the Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act (CCCA) on Nov 24. Customers are now being told their gift cards will not be honoured … Read more

As U.S., U.K. and EU sanction violent Israeli settlers, Canada hangs back

The Trudeau government still won’t say if it’s considering imposing sanctions on violent Israeli settlers in the wake of travel bans announced by both the U.S. and the United Kingdom in recent days. The European Union’s foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell, said last week that he will recommend EU sanctions as well.  Canada, like its American, British … Read more

U.S., Canada to join multi-national operation to counter attacks on commercial ships in Red Sea

The United States, Canada and a host of other nations are creating a new force to protect ships transiting the Red Sea that have come under attack by drones and ballistic missiles fired from Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen, U.S. Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin announced early Tuesday in Bahrain. The seriousness of the attacks, several of … Read more

BP pauses Red Sea shipments as another commercial vessel is attacked near Yemen

A Norwegian-owned vessel was attacked in the Red Sea on Monday in a strike that U.S. officials said originated from Yemeni territory controlled by the Iran-aligned Houthi movement. The attack on the M/V Swan Atlantic was the latest in a series on ships sailing the sea since the start of the Gaza war. There was … Read more

Foul-smelling ginkgo seeds wreak havoc after city plants female tree in error

When the borough of Saint-Léonard planted a ginkgo tree on Dino Delisi’s lawn, he liked the distinctive, fan-shaped leaves and its bright yellow colour in the fall. But his early admiration for the tree is long gone. About five years ago, he noticed what looked like gumball-sized fruit growing on the branches and each season, … Read more

SmileDirectClub shuts down months after filing for bankruptcy protection

SmileDirectClub is shutting down just months after the struggling teeth-straightening company filed for bankruptcy protection. In a Friday announcement, the U.S.-based company that was operating in multiple countries, including Canada, said it had made an “incredibly difficult decision to wind down its global operations, effective immediately.” That leaves existing customers in limbo. SmileDirectClub’s aligner treatment through … Read more

Surge in newcomers putting pressure on inflation via housing demand: BoC official

The recent surge in newcomers is adding to inflation through housing demand, a senior Bank of Canada official said Thursday, warning rental and home prices could continue to rise without a boost to housing supply. In a speech in Windsor, Ont., deputy governor Toni Gravelle acknowledged many of the benefits coming from this rise in immigration, … Read more

2023 set to be hottest year on record, UN says

The United Nations weather agency said Thursday that 2023 is all but certain to be the hottest year on record, warning of worrying trends that suggest increasing floods, wildfires, glacier melt and heat waves in the future. The World Meteorological Organization also warned that the average temperature for the year is up some 1.4 degrees C from … Read more

The year of projectiles: 11 times fans hurled items at musicians in 2023

“I f–cking dare you,” Adele warned a crowd during a July show, to discourage them from throwing objects at her onstage. The Grammy winner appeared to be joking, strolling across the stage in Las Vegas with a T-shirt cannon and firing merchandise into the audience. However, she was addressing the epidemic of fans throwing objects at singers, which reached a … Read more

As temperatures rise, dengue fever infections keep surging around the world

This story is part of CBC Health’s Second Opinion, a weekly analysis of health and medical science news emailed to subscribers on Saturday mornings. If you haven’t subscribed yet, you can do that by clicking here. In Bangladesh, roughly 300,000 people have been infected with dengue this year during the country’s worst-ever outbreak of the mosquito-transmitted disease. … Read more