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TORONTO, Sept 18 (Reuters) - Canada's plan to bring down food prices by tightening regulation could backfire and fail, raising the cost of doing business in the country without providing relief to consumers, lawyers and economists said. Canada's weak competition law has been long blamed for allowing a few players to dominate industries ranging from banks to telecoms and groceries. The proposed amendment will drop the so-called efficiencies defense provision, giving Canada's antitrust regulator - the Competition Bureau - the power to block deals it deems as increasing market concentration, irrespective of any cost efficiencies. Trudeau's move comes as many Canadians reel under an affordability crisis with food prices jumping 25% since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. Food inflation stood at around 35% in Germany and the United Kingdom - well above the 25% level of food inflation in Canada since the start of the pandemic, Scotiabank research showed.

Persons: Justin Trudeau, Pierre Poilievre, Omar Wakil, Torys, Wakil, Derek Holt, Denny Thomas, Deepa Babington Organizations: Competition, Liberal, Conservative, Loblaw Co, Co, Metro Inc, Scotiabank, Antitrust, Rogers Communications, Shaw Communications, Thomson Locations: Canada, Ukraine, Germany, United Kingdom

Canada created 39,900 jobs, Statistics Canada said, compared with a median forecast for a gain of 15,000. The labor market has been resilient even as the Bank of Canada (BoC) raised its key overnight rate 10 times since March 2022 to cool the economy. Money markets see a 44% chance of another BoC rate hike by year-end, up from 36% before the data were published. "This report alone won't make the Bank of Canada regret holding rates steady earlier this week. Derek Holt, vice president of capital markets economics at Scotiabank, noted a gain of 49,500 people in self-employed jobs.

Persons: Carlos Osorio, Andrew Kelvin, Royce Mendes, Derek Holt, Dale Smith, Fergal Smith, Andrea Ricci, Nick Macfie Organizations: Queen, West, REUTERS, Rights, Statistics, Bank of Canada, BoC, TD Securities, Desjardins Group, Canadian, Scotiabank, Thomson Locations: Toronto Ontario, Canada, Statistics Canada, Canadian, Ottawa, Toronto

☆ Canada finance minister defends central bank independence after rate comment
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-07 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Thomas White/Illustration Acquire Licensing RightsSept 6 (Reuters) - Canadian Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland defended the central bank's independence on Wednesday after her comments welcoming the Bank of Canada's decision not to increase its key interest rate raised concerns to the contrary. In a widely expected decision, the Bank of Canada held interest rates steady at a 22-year high of 5%. It is rare for Canadian government ministers to publicly back or criticize central bank policies. Like many developed economies, the Bank of Canada makes its monetary policy decisions independent of the federal government. In June, when the central bank raised rates for the first time after a four-month pause, Freeland stressed that she respected the independence of the central bank, a sentiment she repeated in a press conference later in the day.

Persons: Thomas White, Chrystia Freeland, Freeland, Derek Holt, Pierre Poilievre, Justin Trudeau's, Steve Scherer, David Ljunggren, Denny Thomas, Leslie Adler Organizations: Canadian Finance, Bank of, Bank of Canada, Conservative, Liberal, Ontario, Thomson Locations: Canada, Bank of Nova Scotia, British Columbia, Ottawa

Bank of Canada Governor Tiff Macklem takes part in a news conference after announcing an interest rate decision in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada April 12, 2023. REUTERS/Blair Gable/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsOTTAWA, Sept 6 (Reuters) - The Bank of Canada on Wednesday is expected to keep rates on hold at a 22-year high of 5% after the economy unexpectedly shrank in the second quarter, analysts said. While the economy turned negative in the second quarter, inflation has been stubborn, unexpectedly rising to 3.3% in July as core measures remained well above 3%. Canada's Liberal Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's support has sagged amid high inflation as his Conservative rival, Pierre Poilievre, hammered him for feeding inflation with government spending and driving up rates during a housing crisis. But core inflation measures are inching down slowly, and a wealth of data is due out before the bank next meets to discuss rates in October.

Persons: Blair Gable, Derek Holt, Justin Trudeau's, Pierre Poilievre, Tiago Figueiredo, Holt, Steve Scherer, Mark Porter Organizations: Canada, REUTERS, Rights, Bank of Canada, of Canada, Scotiabank, Canada's Liberal, Conservative, Bank of Canada's, Desjardins Group, Reuters, BoC, Thomson Locations: Ottawa , Ontario, Canada

☆ Fact Check-Hiroshima and Nagasaki hit by nuclear bombs in 1945, radiation dissipated
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-28 | by ( Reuters Fact Check | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

Instantly, 78,000 people were killed, a number that increased to 140,000 by the end of 1945, Reuters has reported, citing the Radiation Effects Research Foundation (here). LINGERING HEALTH EFFECTSThe most enduring evidence of the 1945 nuclear explosions in Hiroshima and Nagasaki is the testimonials of survivors (time.com/after-the-bomb/) and (here) and their well-documented health effects due to the blasts. The RERF Life Span Study (here) of long-term health effects has followed 120,000 residents since 1950, including 94,000 blast survivors and 27,000 unexposed people. Further reading about health effects from the bombings can be found (here). Hiroshima and Nagasaki were each bombed with a nuclear weapon in 1945, killing more than 200,000 people, but radiation and radioactive contamination dissipated and decayed quickly.

Persons: Oppenheimer, Jeffrey Hart, RERF’s, ” Hart, Derek Haas, it’s, ” Haas, Haas, RERF, Read Organizations: Reuters, Research, Radiation, Radiation Engineering, University of Texas, ” Locations: Hiroshima, Nagasaki, U.S, Japan, Austin

InvestingThe market’s best guess at the real, after-inflation, cost of money is back within the range of what once counted as normal. America has put the era of low rates behind it. Can it cope?

Locations: America

Analysts polled by Reuters had forecast inflation would rise to 3.0% from the 27-month low of 2.8% recorded in June. Money markets increased bets for a quarter-percentage-point rate hike in September. They saw a 35% probability immediately after the release of the inflation data, up from 22% beforehand, and then settled back to a 31% chance. Not all economists thought the stronger-than-expected price data would tip the scales toward a hike as soon as its next meeting in September. The Bank of Canada, after its last rate hike in July, said it would study data closely before moving again.

Persons: Carlos Osorio, Statscan, Derek Holt, Tiago Figueiredo, Jules Boudreau, Ismail Shakil, Steve Scherer, Dale Smith, Paul Simao, Jonathan Oatis Organizations: REUTERS, OTTAWA, Reuters, Statistics, Bank of, Scotiabank, Canadian, Bank of Canada, Desjardins Group, Mackenzie Investments, Thomson Locations: Toronto , Ontario, Canada, Statistics Canada, Mackenzie, Ottawa

Macklem came under a rare attack last year from opposition politicians for misjudging inflation and locking in to a rigid forward guidance. "We are turning the corner on inflation," Macklem told reporters in January when the BoC became the first major central bank to announce a pause. The central bank's tightening campaign is a major concern for Canadians who loaded up on cheap mortgages and took on credit card and other debt in recent years. "Now maybe you're getting a certain maturity of the central bank that says, 'We're not going to do that again,'" Holt said. He assured Canadians during the pandemic that rates would rise only in 2023 when it expected the economic slack to be absorbed, but the central bank began hiking rates in March 2022 as inflation spiked.

Persons: Derek Holt, Macklem, Holt, Marc Chandler, Steve Scherer, Fergal Smith, Denny Thomas, Matthew Lewis Organizations: OTTAWA, Bank of Canada, BoC, Scotiabank ., Canadian Real Estate Association, Bannockburn Global Forex, Thomson Locations: Bannockburn, Ottawa, Toronto

After a five-month pause, the BoC raised its overnight rate in June, saying monetary policy was not sufficiently restrictive. "If new information suggests we need to do more, we are prepared to increase our policy rate further," BoC Governor Tiff Macklem told reporters after the decision. The BoC's overnight target rate was last at 5.00% in March and April of 2001. Twenty of 24 economists surveyed by Reuters had expected the central bank to lift rates by a quarter of a percentage point. Money markets had seen a more than a 70% chance of a rate hike before the announcement.

Persons: Derek Holt, Andrew Kelvin, Steve Scherer, Ismail Shakil, Fergal Smith, Divya Rajogopal, Nivedita Balu, Paul Simao, Mark Porter Organizations: OTTAWA, Bank of Canada, Wednesday, BoC, Scotiabank, Reuters, TD Securities, Thomson Locations: Canada, Toronto

OTTAWA, July 7 (Reuters) - Canada's economy added far more jobs than expected in June, data showed on Friday, a result analysts said probably seals the deal for another Bank of Canada (BoC) interest rate hike next week. The unemployment rate in June increased for the second consecutive month and is now at its highest level since February 2022, though still below a pre-pandemic 12-month average, Statscan said. The June jobs report is the last major economic figure to be released before the BoC's rate announcement on Wednesday. Growth has remained resilient despite nine rate increases totaling 450 basis points since March of last year. The net jobs addition in June, the largest since January, were driven by full-time work.

Persons: Jobs, Statscan, Derek Holt, Royce Mendes, Ismail Shakil, Steve Scherer, Dale Smith, Emelia Sithole, Mark Porter Organizations: OTTAWA, Bank of Canada, BoC, Statistics, Scotiabank, Desjardins Group, Reuters, Canadian, Employment, Thomson Locations: Statistics Canada, Ottawa

☆ Funds that have more complicated names perform worse than less-wordy peers, study finds
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-07 | by ( Filip De Mott | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Funds with more complicated names tended to do worse than funds with simpler names. One possible reason is that complex-named funds are more speculative and use buzzwords to attract investors. Of the seven noncomplex funds that beat complex funds, the average difference was 0.37 percentage point. Only large-cap equity funds saw the reverse of this, where complex funds outdid the simpler-named funds by 0.47 percentage point. Another explanation could be that complex-named funds may simply be more speculative, leaning on buzzwords to attract investors.

Persons: Derek Horstmeyer, Horstmeyer Organizations: Service, George Mason University, Street Locations: Wall, Silicon

☆ Complex Fund Names May Be a Warning Sign for Investors
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-06 | by ( Derek Horstmeyer | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Journal Reports: Investing MonthlyIn Retirement, We Have Discovered We Each Need a Cave to Call Our OwnBy Stephen Kreider Yoder , and Karen Kreider YoderWe love to do things together. But we also have made sure to carve out rooms in the house where we can be alone.

Persons: Stephen Kreider Yoder, Karen Kreider Yoder

☆ Active vs. Passive ETFs: How They Stack Up
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-30 | by ( Derek Horstmeyer | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

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Persons: Dow Jones

OTTAWA, June 7 (Reuters) - The Bank of Canada on Wednesday hiked its overnight rate to a 22-year high of 4.75%, and markets and analysts immediately forecast yet another increase next month to ratchet down an overheating economy and stubbornly high inflation. Noting an uptick in inflation in April and the fact that three-month measures of core inflation remained high, the Bank of Canada (BoC) said that "concerns have increased that CPI inflation could get stuck materially above the 2% target." However, Canada Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland said the economic rebound from the COVID-19 pandemic and Russia's invasion of Ukraine has been stoking price increases. "To bring demand lower, which is the bank's goal to achieve their 2% inflation target, we just simply need more tightening." The BoC said it would continue to assess economic indicators going forward to see if they "are consistent with achieving the inflation target."

Persons: Derek Holt, Paul Beaudry, Canada's, Pierre Poilievre, Justin Trudeau, Chrystia Freeland, Andrew Kelvin, Steve Scherer, David Ljunggren, Fergal Smith, Divya Rajagopal, Nivedita Balu, Mark Porter Organizations: OTTAWA, Bank of Canada, Wednesday, Canadian, Scotiabank, BoC, Conservative Party, Liberal, Canada Finance, TD Securities, Thomson Locations: British Columbia, Ukraine, Canada, Toronto

☆ Yen firms on policymaker meeting, dollar swings after debt deal
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-30 | by ( Alun John | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/2] Japanese Yen and U.S. dollar banknotes are seen in this illustration taken March 10, 2023. The yen strengthened on news of the meeting, and held onto those gains, with the dollar last down 0.2% at 140.16 yen having earlier risen as high as 140.93, its highest since November 2022. That helped the dollar index , which measures the U.S. currency against six major peers, hit 104.53 in European trading its highest in 10 weeks, though then retreated to 104.02. "It seems to be win-win on almost any scenario for the dollar right now," said Jane Foley head of FX strategy at Rabobank. That, alongside a rethinking of market positioning - people had been dumping a lot of long dollar positioning since the end of last year - was supporting the dollar, she said.

☆ SpaceX Axiom 2 mission returns from space station
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-30 | by ( Jackie Wattles | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

This mission, dubbed Axiom Mission 2, or AX-2, launched from Florida on May 21. The SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule carrying Axiom Mission 2's four-person crew splashed down off the coast of Panama City, Florida, at 11:04 p.m. A company called Space Adventures brokered several such missions to the space station in the early 2000s, booking rides for wealthy thrill seekers on Russia’s Soyuz spacecraft. The SpaceX capsule transported the AX-2 crew back to Earth after a weeklong mission at the International Space Station. Axiom is one of several US companies gunning to create a new, privately owned space station.

Persons: Rayyanah Barnawi, Peggy Whitson, Whitson, I’m, ” Whitson, John Shoffner, Ali AlQarni, “, ” Barnawi, Barnawi, AlQarni, “ That’s, I’ve, ”, Prince Sultan bin Salman, Biden, axiomspace, Derek Hassmann, it’s, gunning Organizations: CNN, SpaceX, NASA, International, Houston, Crew, Dura, Line Corp, Royal Saudi Air Force, United Arab Emirates Space Agency, Russian Soyuz, Saudi, Space, Soyuz, Government Locations: Panama City , Florida, Gulf of Mexico, Florida, Saudi Arabia, American, Russian, United States

☆ How to watch SpaceX Axiom 2 launch
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-21 | by ( Jackie Wattles | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

Explore the universe with news on fascinating discoveries, scientific advancements and more.CNN —SpaceX is set to launch four passengers — including three paying customers — toward a weeklong stay aboard the International Space Station. The Axiom Ax-2 Prime crew members, from left to right: John Shoffner, Rayyanah Barnawi, Peggy Whitson, and Ali Alqarni, will launch aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon spacecraft to the International Space Station. Axiom brought that business model to the United States, partnering with SpaceX to establish a framework for getting an array of customers to the space station. Axiom is one of several US companies gunning to create a new, privately owned space station. The AX-2 crew will work alongside the professional astronauts on the space station, though they will operate under different schedules.

☆ SpaceX mission lifts off with former NASA astronaut, three paying customers
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-21 | by ( Jackie Wattles | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

The AX-2 crew is being led by former NASA astronaut Peggy Whitson, 63, now an Axiom employee. After the Crew Dragon capsule docks early Monday, the AX-2 crew will join seven astronauts already aboard the space station. The first was Prince Sultan bin Salman, who spent about a week on a NASA space shuttle mission in 1985. Axiom is one of several US companies gunning to create a new, privately owned space station. The AX-2 crew will work alongside the professional astronauts on the space station, though they will operate under different schedules.

☆ Investigator boasted about 'getting queen's medical records', Prince Harry case told
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-17 | by ( Sam Tobin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON, May 17 (Reuters) - A private investigator who worked for the publisher of the Daily Mirror boasted he could "get the queen's medical records", a retired police officer on Wednesday told a court hearing Prince Harry's lawsuit against the British newspaper. Former police officer Derek Haslam told London's High Court that MGN journalists regularly paid a private investigation company, Southern Investigations, to unlawfully gather information. 'QUEEN'S MEDICAL RECORDS'Rees, also a former police officer, "would openly brag" about conducting hacking and blagging – getting private information by deception – on behalf of MGN journalists, Haslam told the court. Haslam also said Rees had told him that he had "sold some information to the Mirror for a story about Prince Michael of Kent being in debt to the bank". Reporting by Sam Tobin; additional reporting by Michael Holden; editing by John StonestreetOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

OTTAWA, May 16 (Reuters) - Canada's annual inflation rate rose in April for the first time in 10 months, data showed on Tuesday, adding pressure on the central bank to raise interest rates again after having paused its tightening campaign since January. Annual inflation unexpectedly rose to 4.4% in April, Statistics Canada said. Higher rent and mortgage interest costs contributed the most to the annual inflation rate in April, Statscan said. The higher interest rate environment may have contributed to rising rents by stimulating higher rental demand, the agency said. Excluding food and energy, prices rose 4.4% compared with a rise of 4.5% in March.

☆ Dollar awaits inflation data, rattled by debt ceiling impasse
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-10 | by ( Amanda Cooper | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

SINGAPORE, May 10 (Reuters) - The dollar seesawed on Wednesday after U.S. President Joe Biden and top lawmakers made no headway in the debt ceiling crisis, although volatility was minimal ahead of inflation data that could be instrumental in determining where interest rates head. The dollar held onto most of Tuesday's gains, thanks to another sharp rise in short-dated Treasury yields and to the nervousness that prevailed over Wednesday's U.S. inflation data. The euro was last down 0.1% at $1.0947, as was sterling , which eased 0.1% to $1.2605. Against a basket of currencies, the dollar index edged up 0.14% to 101.76, having earlier fallen by as much as 0.11%. The Japanese yen was steady against the dollar at 135.25 and fell 0.1% against the euro to 148.075, while the Australian dollar fell 0.2% to $0.675.

☆ Dollar braces for inflation, rattled by debt ceiling impasse
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-10 | by ( Amanda Cooper | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

SINGAPORE, May 10 (Reuters) - The dollar seesawed on Wednesday after U.S. President Joe Biden and top lawmakers made no headway in the debt ceiling crisis, although volatility was minimal ahead of inflation data that could be instrumental in determining where interest rates head. Biden, McCarthy and the three other top congressional leaders are set to meet again on Friday. The dollar held onto most of Tuesday's gains, thanks to another sharp rise in short-dated Treasury yields and to the nervousness that prevailed over Wednesday's U.S. inflation data. Against a basket of currencies, the U.S. dollar index steadied at 101.64. Elsewhere, the Japanese yen was steady against the dollar at 135.25 and against the euro at 148.155, while the Australian dollar eased 0.1% to $0.6755.

Jeremy Selwyn/WPA Pool/Getty Images Camilla stands next to Queen Elizabeth II during a Diamond Jubilee pageant on the River Thames in June 2012. Chris Jackson/Getty Images From left, Camilla, Charles, Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip attend the state opening of Parliament in May 2013. From left are Camilla, Charles, Queen Elizabeth II, Prince Louis, Duchess Catherine, Princess Charlotte, Prince George and Prince William. Frank Augstein/WPA Pool/Getty Images In pictures: Britain's Queen Camilla Prev NextShe reportedly met Prince Charles at a polo match in Windsor in 1970 and they became friends. From left are Camilla, Charles, Queen Elizabeth II, Prince Louis, Duchess Catherine, Princess Charlotte, Prince George and Prince William.

TOKYO, April 19 (Reuters) - Data showing British inflation stayed above 10% in March meant the pound climbed against the dollar while other currencies dipped, with the greenback underpinned by a tick-up in U.S. yields. Sterling was last 0.25% higher at $1.2454, heading back to last week's 10-month high, after data showed British consumer price inflation eased by less than expected in March to 10.1% from February's 10.4%. However, he added: "With the Fed expected to hike in May and the ECB to hike by more over the coming months, the positive impetus from this data for the pound will likely be contained." Expectations for higher official rates in a market relative to those elsewhere typically drag money market and government bond yields higher, attracting cash into a country while boosting its currency. "It's the volatility in the bond market that's driving the dollar, not the other way round."

The MSCI All-World index (.MIWD00000PUS) fell 0.2%, thanks to a broad-based decline in equities around the world. S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 futures , fell between 0.3-0.5%, suggesting a touch of weakness at the opening bell. The Fed's "beige book" of economic conditions is published on Wednesday and appearances are due from Chicago Fed President Austan Goolsbee and New York Fed President John Williams. In an interview with Reuters on Tuesday, St Louis Fed President James Bullard said that, far from pausing, the central bank should keep raising interest rates, based on how persistent inflation has proven to be. UK inflation fell to 10.1% in March, from February's 10.4% - above expectations for a decline to 9.8% and the highest in western Europe, according to data on Wednesday.

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