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Statistics Canada to release July figures for real GDP today

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:48:00 GMT

OTTAWA — Statistics Canada will release its figures for how the economy started the third quarter this morning.The agency will report real gross domestic product numbers for July.Its early estimate for the month released on Sept. 1 suggested real GDP was essentially unchanged in July, though it cautioned at the time that the reading would be updated.It said that gains in the public, finance and insurance, and professional, scientific and technical services sectors were offset by weakness in the manufacturing, transportation and warehousing, and construction sectors. The report comes after the economy reversed course in June and contracted.Statistics Canada says real GDP in June decreased 0.2 per cent as both services-producing industries and goods-producing industries declined.This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 29, 2023.The Canadian Press

Air Canada pilots picket at Toronto’s Pearson as talks continue

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:48:00 GMT

TORONTO — Air Canada pilots are demonstrating at Toronto’s Pearson airport today, calling for better wages and working conditions as talks with the country’s biggest carrier continue.The Air Line Pilots Association kick-started the bargaining process in June, one day after fellow union members at WestJet ratified a new collective agreement.The union represents more than 5,000 Air Canada pilots.Both union and employer say the so-called informational picket at Terminal 1, which comes the same day their own nine-year deal expires, will not affect Air Canada’s flight schedule.Charlene Hudy, who heads the union’s Air Canada contingent, says the agreement has grown stale, with co-workers leaving for better pay in the United States.Air Canada says it remains engaged in productive discussions with the union, with the deal’s provisions remaining in effect.Pilots north of the border have been seeking gains that will bring them closer to deals won by their counter...

Daily horoscope for September 29, 2023

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:48:00 GMT

Moon Alert: There are no restrictions to shopping or important decisions today. The Full Moon in Aries peaks at 5:58 a.m. EDT today (2:58 a.m. PDT).Happy Birthday for Friday, Sept. 29, 2023:You march to the beat of your own drum. You are independent, unconventional and want the freedom to do your own thing. This is the last year of a nine-year cycle for you, which means it’s appropriate to let go of anything or anyone who is holding you back.ARIES(March 21-April 19) ★★This is the classic day for squabbles with partners or tension about a romantic interest. Possibly, some couples will be at odds because of differing approaches to raising kids. Yet again, others might dispute how to handle a social occasion. It’s a tricky day! Stay calm. Tonight: Stay steady.TAURUS(April 20-May 20) ★★★Today’s Full Moon could trigger problems at work with co-workers or clients. Meanwhile, something unexpected at home or within your family could occur. Perhaps a redecorating project is...

NextGenerationEU: Latvia submits request to modify recovery and resilience plan and add a REPowerEU chapter

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:48:00 GMT

On 26 September, Latvia submitted a request to the Commission to modify its recovery and resilience plan, to which it also wishes to add a REPowerEU chapter.The REPowerEU chapter contains a reform to facilitate the development of renewable energy communities and energy self-generation. The reform also aims at increasing the uptake of sustainable biomethane. The chapter further contains three investment measures. Two of the three investments seek to improve the electricity grid by increasing its capacity (so that more renewable energy sources can be connected), by digitalizing and securing it, and by synchronising it with the EU grid. The third investment aims at increasing the share of sustainable biomethane in final energy consumption by creating a regional centre, where sustainable biomethane can be injected into existing infrastructures, building a regional biomethane ‘injection point'.Latvia is also proposing to modify 44 measures included in its plan. These amendments are based...

Miss Manners: I confronted the bride about the exclusion, and she got all defensive

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:48:00 GMT

DEAR MISS MANNERS: My sister is getting married for the second time, and is having a traditional wedding party for the first time.Related ArticlesAdvice | Miss Manners: I was annoyed by the fuss over the cost of my dinner Advice | Miss Manners: They stormed off and forgot the cooler. Do I have to keep it for them? Advice | Miss Manners: What am I allowed to say about a stranger’s hair? Advice | Miss Manners: My husband doesn’t understand why I was so mad at his friend Advice | Miss Manners: Did I deserve this treatment for being a few minutes late? My sisters and I are in the wedding, and our children are all included. We have realized, though, that our brother was not asked to be a groomsman or anything else.I confronted my sister, and she said it’s her fiance’s choice, and that he has had his close friends and cousins chosen for his wedding for a long time.I said she could have ...

Child Care at a Crossroads: Is there a solution?

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:48:00 GMT

This is the final part of a special three-part series, “Child Care at a Crossroads,” where WTOP looks at the state of child care now and what the future holds once billions of dollars in aid expire.The child care industry is struggling — and fewer and fewer people are getting into the field. But can something be done to reverse that trend?After discussing the current situation with those in the industry, the answer seems to be ‘yes’, but that it comes with a cost — a cost that might be untenable in the current political climate.The bottom line comes down to money. In 2021, a pandemic relief package included $24 billion in stabilization funds that states were then able to dole out to the child care industry. How that money got to providers varied from state to state, but it kept many of them afloat.This Sunday, Oct. 1, that funding comes to an end.When that happens, “we’re going to see what it looks like when we go back … to the way we were doing things before,” sai...

Player of the Week: Bishop Ireton’s Kate Gomez

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:48:00 GMT

This week’s WTOP Player of the Week is Kate Gomez of Bishop Ireton High School in Alexandria, Virginia. (Courtesy Tom Noone) This week’s WTOP Player of the Week is Kate Gomez of Bishop Ireton High School in Alexandria, Virginia. (Courtesy Tom Noone) Each week, WTOP is picking one student athlete to be featured on air and online as our Player of the Week. This week’s WTOP Player of the Week is Kate Gomez of Bishop Ireton High School in Alexandria, Virginia.Gomez is a junior at Bishop Ireton and a captain on the varsity tennis team, playing No. 4 singles and No. 2 doubles for the Cardinals. She’s off to a near-flawless start to the 2023 season, finishing the month of September with a perfect 7-0 record in sing...

Live updates | Rahm and Hatton put first point on the board at the Ryder Cup for Europe

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:48:00 GMT

United States' Scottie Scheffler looks at his shot from the 1st tee during his morning Foursome match at the Ryder Cup golf tournament at the Marco Simone Golf Club in Guidonia Montecelio, Italy, Friday, Sept. 29, 2023. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)(AP/Andrew Medichini) United States' Scottie Scheffler looks at his shot from the 1st tee during his morning Foursome match at the Ryder Cup golf tournament at the Marco Simone Golf Club in Guidonia Montecelio, Italy, Friday, Sept. 29, 2023. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)(AP/Andrew Medichini) GUIDONIA MONTECELIO, Italy (AP) — Jon Rahm and Tyrrell Hatton have put the first point on the board at the Ryder Cup for Europe.It was a blowout, too, as Europe’s fiery pairing wo...

Hungary’s Orbán casts doubt on European Union accession talks for Ukraine

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:48:00 GMT

BUDAPEST, Hungary (AP) — Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán cast doubt Friday on the prospect of the European Union beginning negotiations any time soon for Ukraine to join the bloc, saying it was unrealistic to launch the accession process with a country that’s at war. Speaking to state radio, Orbán noted that unanimity among the EU’s 27 member states is required to admit a new country into the bloc. In the case of Hungary, he said, the parliament would have to give the go-ahead to Ukraine, which has ambitions to join the EU within two years. “When I’m in the chamber, I don’t feel the insurmountable desire for the Hungarian parliament to vote for Ukraine’s membership of the European Union within two years. So I would be careful with these ambitious plans,” Orbán said. Ukraine was officially granted EU candidate status last year — an unusually rapid decision for the EU and its go-slow approach to expansion, prompted by the war in Ukraine. The European Council is...

Blast at rally celebrating birthday of Islam’s prophet kills 35 people in southwestern Pakistan

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:48:00 GMT

QUETTA, Pakistan (AP) — A powerful bomb exploded near a mosque at a rally celebrating the birthday of Islam’s Prophet Muhammad in southwestern Pakistan on Friday, killing at least 35 people and injuring nearly 70 others, police and a government official said.The bombing occurred in Mastung, a district in Baluchistan province, where hundreds of people had gathered for a procession to celebrate the birth anniversary of the prophet. Muslims hold rallies and distribute free meals to people on the occasion, which is known as Mawlid an-Nabi.Those injured in the blast were taken to nearby hospitals and some were in critical condition, government administrator Atta Ullah said.A senior police officer, Mohammad Nawaz, was among the dead, Ullah said. Officers were investigating to determine whether the bombing was a suicide attack, he added.Friday’s bombing came days after authorities asked police to remain on maximum alert, saying militants could target rallies making the birthday...