Canada column for
Sunday, Dec. 1/19
THE CANADIAN REPORT
(c) By Jim Fox
The signatures have
dried long ago but the new North American free-trade deal has yet to “cross the
finish line.”
The three countries
have signed the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement but it has to be ratified
by their legislatures before it takes effect.
There’s a push on
now to get the deal done by the end of the year but Mexico’s Jesus Seade said
issues raised by the Democrats are valid but not an impediment to derail the
deal.
Seade met with
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and deputy Chrystia Freeland in Ottawa and said
there are “improvements where all three of us are on the same side.”
The deal is stalled
in the U.S. Congress as Democrats want stricter enforcement measures for its
labor and environmental standards.
One issue where
Canada can help is encouraging Mexico to adopt its system for certifying
unions.
Canada is
“extremely supportive of Mexico’s steps towards labor reforms” and the
countries had been working on this, Trudeau said.
U.S. House Speaker
Nancy Pelosi said that a version of the trade deal was “within range” but a
final review is needed.
---
It is expected to
take weeks to recover from an economy damaging strike by Canadian National
Railway workers.
The eight-day
strike of 3,200 Teamsters Canada workers was estimated to cost the country’s
largest railway $180 million.
Without rail
shipping, the strike disrupted the vital export and import service for goods and
commodities.
Details of the
tentative agreement that ended the strike weren’t revealed pending
ratification.
The workers were
demanding improved working conditions, including rest breaks.
---
News in brief:
- The pace of
economic growth in Canada slowed in the third quarter of the year, Statistics
Canada reported. The real gross domestic product grew at an annualized rate of
1.3 percent over the three months. The report is in advance of this week’s
interest rate announcement by the Bank of Canada. The central bank is predicted
to keep its key interest rate unchanged at 1.75 percent.
- A British
Columbia tour company has been fined $35,000 for using bait to attract bears.
The fine is against Blue River Safari that offers bear and wildlife viewing tours.
Cranberries, peanut butter and meatballs were set out to lure bears and ensure
better viewing opportunities for clients. This is “an extremely dangerous
activity,” the Conservation Officer Service said.
---
Facts and figures:
The Canadian dollar
is higher at 75.31 cents U.S. while the U.S. dollar returns $1.327 Canadian before
exchange fees.
The Bank of Canada’s
key is steady at 1.75 percent while the prime-lending rate is 3.95 percent.
Canadian stock markets are higher with the Toronto
exchange index at 17,040 points and the TSX Venture index 531 points.
The average price
for gas in Canada is up at $1.148 a liter or $4.36 for a U.S. gallon.
Lotto Max: (Nov. 26) 13, 14, 18, 22, 42, 44
and 47; bonus 12. (Nov. 22) 5, 9, 23, 29, 30, 31 and 37; bonus 34.
Lotto 6/49: (Nov.
27) 13, 15, 16, 20, 39 and 42; bonus 27. (Nov. 23) 16, 19, 24, 29, 31 and 36;
bonus 8.
---
Regional briefs:
- A Quebec police
officer abused his authority by detaining a woman for refusing to hold onto an
escalator handrail, the Supreme Court of Canada ruled. In a unanimous ruling critical
of Montreal’s transit authority, the court found Bela Kosoian was within her
rights to refuse to obey an unlawful order. Constable Fabio Camacho had pointed
to a caution notice pictogram on the escalator and gave her fines for $420. The
woman was awarded $20,000 in damages by the court.
- A rural property
in Nova Scotia’s Long Pond that’s sacred to hockey fans is for sale. The Annapolis
Valley property is called the “cradle of hockey” as it’s believed that hockey
has been played on the frozen pond since the early 1800s. Property owner Danny
Dill is asking $1.38 million for the 25-acre spread. It was called one of the “seven
hockey wonders of the world” by Sports Illustrated magazine.
-30-
Jim Fox can be reached at canadareport@hotmail.com
No comments:
Post a Comment