Finance

Please review each article prior to use: grade-level applicability and curricular alignment might not be obvious from the headline alone.

A CIBC report says sweeping tariffs imposed by the U.S. could cost the Canadian economy as much as 3.25 per cent, even factoring in possible exemptions to the oil and gas sector. President Donald Trump attends the national prayer service at the Washington National Cathedral, Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2025, in Washington. THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP/Evan Vucci

Sweeping tariffs could be 3% hit to Canadian economy, even with carve-outs: report

Sammy Hudes, The Canadian Press 5 minute read Preview

Sweeping tariffs could be 3% hit to Canadian economy, even with carve-outs: report

Sammy Hudes, The Canadian Press 5 minute read Sunday, Oct. 12, 2025

TORONTO - A CIBC report says sweeping tariffs imposed by the U.S. could cost the Canadian economy as much as 3.25 per cent, even factoring in possible exemptions for the oil and gas sector.

An analysis published Tuesday examined four potential scenarios in which U.S. President Donald Trump slaps new taxes on goods imported from Canada, ranging from 10 to 20 per cent and with possible carve-outs for key industries.

Speaking with reporters on Monday evening, Trump said he's thinking about hitting Canada and Mexico with 25 per cent tariffs on Feb. 1.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has said Canada would respond and that "everything is on the table."

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Sunday, Oct. 12, 2025
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Poll highlights belief in rising corruption

Gabrielle Piché 4 minute read Friday, Nov. 29, 2024

Manitobans’ trust in businesses — and government’s ability to address corruption — is on a downhill slope, a new Angus Reid Institute poll found.

“I feel like things are getting more and more shifty, especially after COVID,” said Will Houston, as he shopped in a Winnipeg supermarket this week.

Prices across the board have skyrocketed over the past few years, he noted.

“I fully acknowledge that there are supply chains and there’s people who need to be paid all the way back to the producer,” Houston said. “But I think that there are people who are taking a higher cut than they used to.”

MIKAELA MACKENZIE / FREE PRESS Chris Holbrow at his new Forgotten Flavours location on Corydon on Monday, Nov. 18, 2024. The Niverville-based bakery is opening in Winnipeg (where the Pennyloaf Bakery used to be) on Tuesday. For biz story. Winnipeg Free Press 2024

Forgotten Flavours Artisan Bakery fills Pennyloaf void on Corydon

Gabrielle Piché 5 minute read Preview

Forgotten Flavours Artisan Bakery fills Pennyloaf void on Corydon

Gabrielle Piché 5 minute read Monday, Nov. 18, 2024

After nearly a year, the smell of fresh bread will once again fill a Corydon Avenue bakery.

The sign out front no longer reads “Pennyloaf Bakery,” and the staff inside are no longer employed by former clothing mogul and entrepreneur Pepper Foster.

Instead, an emblem for Forgotten Flavours Artisan Bakery faces passersby. Owners Chris and Maria Holbrow busy themselves inside 858 Corydon Ave., preparing for the Winnipeg shop’s first day open Tuesday.

“We’re trying to complement the space and ensure that we can fill a void that was very sad to see go,” Chris Holbrow said. “We have a great product to offer.”

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Monday, Nov. 18, 2024
Deciding whether to keep fixing your aging car or trade it in for a new one is a tough calculation. A new vehicle for sale is seen at an auto mall in Ottawa, on Monday, April 26, 2021. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Justin Tang
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Time to replace your car? How to tell when repair bills are no longer worth it

Ritika Dubey, The Canadian Press 5 minute read Preview
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Time to replace your car? How to tell when repair bills are no longer worth it

Ritika Dubey, The Canadian Press 5 minute read Wednesday, Oct. 15, 2025

TORONTO - Deciding whether to fix your aging car again or trade it in for a new one can be a tough calculation at the best of times, let alone when financing costs have significantly jumped and car prices have soared.

Whether to repair or replace your car comes down to balancing the cost and utility of the vehicle, according to Ben Mayhew, a financial planner and founder of Aergo Financial Planning in Halifax.

"But when you're in an environment where used car prices and new car prices are significantly higher, we need to go deeper on looking at that balance," he said.

He suggested finding a trustworthy mechanic who can help determine if an expensive repair could help defer acar purchase.

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Wednesday, Oct. 15, 2025
Canada’s population grew by more than 430,000 during the third quarter, marking the fastest pace of population growth in any quarter since 1957. Children stand to sing O Canada after being sworn-in as Canadian citizens at the Halifax Citadel in Halifax on Wednesday, May 24, 2023. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darren Calabrese
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Canada reports fastest population growth in history in third quarter of 2023

Nojoud Al Mallees, The Canadian Press 5 minute read Preview
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Canada reports fastest population growth in history in third quarter of 2023

Nojoud Al Mallees, The Canadian Press 5 minute read Wednesday, Oct. 15, 2025

OTTAWA - Canada's pace of population growth continues to set records as the country brings in a historic number of temporary residents, largely through international student and temporary foreign worker programs.

The country'spopulation grew by more than 430,000 during the third quarter, marking the fastest pace of population growth in any quarter since 1957.

Statistics Canada released its Oct. 1 population estimates on Tuesday, putting the number at more than 40.5 million.

The agency says the population growth over the first nine months of 2023 has already surpassed the total growth in any other full year, including the record set in 2022.

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Wednesday, Oct. 15, 2025
JOHN WOODS / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS FILES Johnny Vernaus, president of Vernaus Auto Body, with technician Roy Samlal, says minor claims are processing quickly, but vehicles with extensive damage are taking longer to be assessed.

Manitoba auto repair shops in high gear amid lengthy MPI strike

Tyler Searle 4 minute read Preview

Manitoba auto repair shops in high gear amid lengthy MPI strike

Tyler Searle 4 minute read Thursday, Oct. 19, 2023

Despite bumps in the road, Manitoba auto repair shops are chugging along as strike action at Manitoba Public Insurance drags into its seventh week.

“There are some delays, but we are hoping the (MPI) people can get back to work. We miss them. We miss the adjusters, but there is not much we can do about it,” said John Vernaus, owner of Vernaus Autobody in Winnipeg.

“Can you ask for more when (MPI is) operating with maybe one-10th of the staff?”

Around 1,700 walked off the job Aug. 28, after the Manitoba Government General Employees’ Union and the Crown auto insurer failed to reach a contract agreement. Many services have been halted, delayed or limited in the weeks since, as MPI works to maintain operations with reduced staff.

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Thursday, Oct. 19, 2023
JOHN WOODS / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Rachel Nedelec, owner of Flour & Flower bakery, is opening her first storefront location on Waterloo Street next week. The company’s creations were included in Grammy Awards gift bags this year.

Flour & Flower plants roots with Waterloo Street location as demand for unique cakes, cookies decorated with edible flowers grows

Gabrielle Piché 4 minute read Preview

Flour & Flower plants roots with Waterloo Street location as demand for unique cakes, cookies decorated with edible flowers grows

Gabrielle Piché 4 minute read Saturday, Sep. 30, 2023

Rachel Nedelec’s baking has reached the Grammys and Australia, an international fashion house and at least one yoga studio.

Next week, Flour & Flower will have a permanent home — its first brick-and-mortar bakery.

“I said, ‘I want it, I need it, this is my space,’” Nedelec recounted, laughing.

She and her real estate agent had heard the spot at 530 Waterloo St. was coming available. It was déjà vu: Nedelec first toured the site in early 2020, when her business was not yet half a year old.

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Saturday, Sep. 30, 2023
The Crave app is seen on a phone in Toronto on Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019. Crave is introducing two ad-supported tiers that each shave $5 or $10 off the monthly subscription fee. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Graeme Roy
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Crave introduces ad tiers, including $9.99 plan

The Canadian Press 2 minute read Preview
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Crave introduces ad tiers, including $9.99 plan

The Canadian Press 2 minute read Saturday, Sep. 20, 2025

TORONTO - Crave is introducing two ad-supported tiers that each shave $5 or $10 off the monthly subscription fee.

Bell Media says its new Crave Basic with Ads costs $9.99/month, while Crave Standard with Ads costs $14.99/month. An unchanged ad-free option remains at $19.99/month, and is renamed Crave Premium Ad-Free.

Viewers can watch most shows and movies, including HBO and Max originals, on the ad-supported plans. About one per cent of titles won't be available due to licensing restrictions.

Ads will be 15 or 30 seconds long, totalling about five minutes per hour, and appear before and during some episodes and films.

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Saturday, Sep. 20, 2025
A person navigates the Temu website on a smartphone in Toronto, Tuesday, April 4, 2023. Temu launched in Canada in early February, the same month it aired a Super Bowl ad with the tagline

Low-cost Temu goes head-to-head with Amazon

Brett Bundale, The Canadian Press 6 minute read Preview

Low-cost Temu goes head-to-head with Amazon

Brett Bundale, The Canadian Press 6 minute read Saturday, Sep. 20, 2025

It started with a video of a postal worker sorting a mountain of orange packages from Temu.

Rachael D'Amore hadn't heard of the online shopping site, but after watching the video she found good reviews, affordable products and free shipping on most orders — what she called "a unicorn in Canada these days."

"I had to double check the URL to make sure that I wasn't on the U.S. site," she said.

Temu also offered a $5 credit if an order took longer than 12 days to arrive — a quasi-insurance policy that gave D'Amore the confidence to place a $30 order for seven items, including an 89-cent necklace, earrings for $1.78 and hair clips for $3.59.

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Saturday, Sep. 20, 2025
FILE - An electronic ticker displays news Wednesday, March 11, 2020, in New York's Times Square. A new survey released Wednesday, Feb. 15, 2023, shows fully half of Americans indicate they believe national news organizations intend to mislead, misinform or persuade the public to adopt a point of view. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer, File)
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Study shows ‘striking’ number who believe news misinforms

David Bauder, The Associated Press 3 minute read Preview
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Study shows ‘striking’ number who believe news misinforms

David Bauder, The Associated Press 3 minute read Thursday, Dec. 4, 2025

NEW YORK (AP) — Half of Americans in a recent survey indicated they believe national news organizations intend to mislead, misinform or persuade the public to adopt a particular point of view through their reporting.

The survey, released Wednesday by Gallup and the Knight Foundation, goes beyond others that have shown a low level of trust in the media to the startling point where many believe there is an intent to deceive.

Asked whether they agreed with the statement that national news organizations do not intend to mislead, 50% said they disagreed. Only 25% agreed, the study found.

Similarly, 52% disagreed with a statement that disseminators of national news “care about the best interests of their readers, viewers and listeners,” the study found. It said 23% of respondents believed the journalists were acting in the public's best interests.

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Thursday, Dec. 4, 2025
A Swiss national flag waves on a building in Davos, Switzerland, Sunday, Jan. 15, 2023. The annual meeting of the World Economic Forum is taking place in Davos from Jan. 16 until Jan. 20, 2023. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)

As elites arrive in Davos, conspiracy theories thrive online

Sophia Tulp, The Associated Press 6 minute read Preview

As elites arrive in Davos, conspiracy theories thrive online

Sophia Tulp, The Associated Press 6 minute read Saturday, Sep. 20, 2025

NEW YORK (AP) — When some of the world’s wealthiest and most influential figures gathered at the World Economic Forum’s annual meeting last year, sessions on climate change drew high-level discussions on topics such as carbon financing and sustainable food systems.

But an entirely different narrative played out on the internet, where social media users claimed leaders wanted to force the population to eat insects instead of meat in the name of saving the environment.

The annual event in the Swiss ski resort town of Davos, which opens Monday, has increasingly become a target of bizarre claims from a growing chorus of commentators who believe the forum involves a group of elites manipulating global events for their own benefit. Experts say what was once a conspiracy theory found in the internet’s underbelly has now hit the mainstream.

“This isn’t a conspiracy that is playing out on the extreme fringes,” said Alex Friedfeld, a researcher with the Anti-Defamation League who studies anti-government extremism. “We’re seeing it on mainstream social media platforms being shared by regular Americans. We were seeing it being spread by mainstream media figures right on their prime time news, on their nightly networks.”

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Saturday, Sep. 20, 2025
FILE - Los Angeles Dodgers' Max Scherzer pitches against the San Francisco Giants during the ninth inning of Game 5 of a baseball National League Division Series Thursday, Oct. 14, 2021, in San Francisco. Eight-time All-Star Max Scherzer is nearing a $130 million, three-year contract with the New York Mets, a person familiar with the negotiations told The Associated Press. The person spoke on condition of anonymity Monday, Nov. 29, because the agreement was still being worked on and would be subject to a successful physical.(AP Photo/John Hefti, File)

Even if games go on, MLB lockout could alienate Gen Z

Jake Seiner, The Associated Press 7 minute read Preview

Even if games go on, MLB lockout could alienate Gen Z

Jake Seiner, The Associated Press 7 minute read Thursday, Dec. 4, 2025

NEW YORK (AP) — Max Scherzer stars in the last video posted to Major League Baseball’s TikTok account before the league locked out the players Thursday morning.

The clip, viewed over 400,000 times, shows the final out from Scherzer's first no-hitter in 2015 with Washington, followed by teammates dousing the three-time Cy Young Award winner with chocolate syrup. Hip-hop duo Rae Sremmurd's “Swang” plays in the background.

“Max Scherzer is ... officially a New York Met!!!” the caption reads, celebrating Scherzer's $130 million deal to pitch in Queens.

It could be the last post featuring a big league player sent to the account’s 4.8 million followers for months, a curveball with real consequences for a sport already concerned about courting young fans.

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Thursday, Dec. 4, 2025
Simeon Rusnak photo Carly Shuler (left) and Maya Kotecha have built Hoot Reading into a major player in online tutoring. The $3 million in equity the company raised — led by toy maker Spin Master — will allow Hoot to expand its reach and its offerings.
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City company set to expand online tutoring presence after raising large equity stake

Martin Cash 5 minute read Preview
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City company set to expand online tutoring presence after raising large equity stake

Martin Cash 5 minute read Tuesday, Oct. 19, 2021

Winnipeg education technology company Hoot Reading has landed one of the first investments in a new venture capital fund from toy maker Spin Master.

Interest in Hoot Reading, which has developed an online tutoring platform whose mission is closing the gap in what’s been identified as a reading slump in the fourth grade, has grown significantly through the pandemic.

With school-age children home in various parts of North America at various times during the pandemic, parents have been forced to look for more tools to help with early childhood educational habits and Hoot Reading has caught on.

“We have had incredible traction during the pandemic,” said Maya Kotecha, co-founder and co-CEO of Hoot Reading. “It has been a tailwind for us.”

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Tuesday, Oct. 19, 2021
Claire Hutchings, co-owner of the independent Dilly Dally Kids toy store in Vancouver, is shown in this undated handout image. Hutching said nearly every supplier increased their price list this summer some for the second time in a year. THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO-Dilly Dally Kids-Jay Gough*MANDATORY CREDIT*
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Toy industry grapples with supply chain issues ahead of busy holiday shopping season

Brett Bundale, The Canadian Press 5 minute read Preview
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Toy industry grapples with supply chain issues ahead of busy holiday shopping season

Brett Bundale, The Canadian Press 5 minute read Saturday, May. 23, 2026

Ahead of the release of the Paw Patrol movie this summer, Toys “R” Us Canada and toy maker Spin Master Corp. did something rarely seen before in the toy industry.

They air freighted Liberty toys — the latest member of the animated search and rescue team — from China to Canada to get the new pup on store shelves in time for the film’s premiere.

“We really wanted to have Liberty available for our customers when the movie came out,” said Katrina Fyfle, Toys “R” Us Canada brand manager. "She was one that we put on an airplane in partnership with the vendor.”

The unusual step underscores the enduring difficulty of operating amid a pandemic and its related labour shortages, escalating material prices, rising shipping costs and lengthy delays.

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Saturday, May. 23, 2026
SUPPLIED The City of Selkirk announced it has purchased the Garry Theatre for $350,000, plus closing costs.
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The show must go on as Selkirk buys theatre

Cody Sellar 3 minute read Preview
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The show must go on as Selkirk buys theatre

Cody Sellar 3 minute read Thursday, Aug. 26, 2021

Many in Selkirk thought the credits had rolled for the Garry Theatre, but it appears there’s a sequel.

Landmark Cinemas decided to close it in May and on Wednesday, the City of Selkirk announced it had purchased the theatre for $350,000, plus closing costs.

“What we’ve heard so far is people are very excited and very happy that the city has been able to secure the property,” said Selkirk CAO Duane Nicol.

Nicol said the city will reach out to the community to determine how best to use the building. The city hopes it will become a centre for arts and culture, he said.

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Thursday, Aug. 26, 2021
Valentin Cueff photo Mariette Mulaire, présidente du WTC Winnipeg, va à la pêche aux entreprises francophones pour amener de l’investissement dans la province.
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À la pêche aux entreprises

Valentin Cueff de La Liberté pour le Winnipeg Free Press 5 minute read Preview
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À la pêche aux entreprises

Valentin Cueff de La Liberté pour le Winnipeg Free Press 5 minute read Saturday, May. 6, 2017

Alt Hotel, la boulangerie Le Croissant, l’Épi de blé, Thermëa Spa. Qu’ont ces lieux de Winnipeg en commun? Ce sont des compagnies nées dans d’autres contrées francophones, qui ont posé leur valise dans la capitale manitobaine. Entreprises familiales ou grosses sociétés, toutes ont été “séduites” par Mariette Mulaire et son équipe pour venir s’installer dans la province.

Pour Mulaire, le premier défi est souvent de faire connaître le Manitoba en dehors du Canada. “Vous venez d’où?””De Winnipeg.” “C’est où, ça?” “Au Canada.” “Ah, au Québec?” “Pas tout à fait…”

La présidente-directrice générale du WTC a l’habitude d’avoir ce type d’échanges, notamment quand elle se déplace en France pour des forums économiques. “Pour les entreprises, le Manitoba est une alternative qui est mal connue, ou méconnue. Il faut éduquer les gens.”

À l’origine, il y avait l’Agence nationale et internationale du Manitoba (ANIM). Née en 2007, cet organisme avait pour but “d’utiliser le bilinguisme au Manitoba pour aller chercher les marchés francophones.” Mulaire en était la PDG. Elle travaillait de paire avec Michel Simard et Annie Girard pour attirer des investisseurs dans la province, ainsi qu’avec Brigitte Léger dans le dossier de l’immigration économique francophone.

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Saturday, May. 6, 2017
MIKE DEAL / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Chi Liao, a U of M assistant professor, whose expertise is in behavioural finance, says biases can lead to bad decisions.
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Investors behaving badly

By Joel Schlesinger 6 minute read Preview
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Investors behaving badly

By Joel Schlesinger 6 minute read Saturday, Apr. 30, 2016

Finance professor Chi Liao’s background in mathematics often comes in handy in her line of work.

After all, both corporate and investment finance are built upon numbers. Yet financial reporting — balance sheets and cash-flow analysis — is not her area of interest.

In fact, her expertise has less to do with the numerical side of money and more to do with how our emotions affect how we manage our hard-earned cash.

“I’ve always been fascinated by people-watching and why it is we do what we do,” says Liao, who studied mathematics and finance before completing a PhD in behavioural finance from the University of Toronto in 2014.

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Saturday, Apr. 30, 2016