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Special Features
Statement by the Prime Minister of Canada
Sunday, November 15, 2009
Office of the Prime Minister
Prime Minister Stephen Harper issued the following statement at the close of the 2009 Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation Leaders’ Summit:
“While Canada’s economy was built through trans-Atlantic trade, our future prosperity will increasingly depend on our ties to the Pacific. The region is home to some of the world’s most dynamic and fastest growing economies.
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Canada and India steadfast together
Monday, November 16, 2009
Office of the Prime Minister
Prime Minister Stephen Harper today addressed Indian business leaders, emphasizing that Canada and India must forge stronger trade, investment and educational ties between the two countries.
“Canada stands beside India as a steadfast and faithful friend,” said the Prime Minister during his speech outlining the many historical, cultural, social and economic ties between the two countries. “These bonds are a solid foundation upon which we can build an even stronger, more productive friendship.”
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Minister of State Kent Concludes Successful Visit to Cuba
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada
The Honourable Peter Kent, Minister of State of Foreign Affairs (Americas), on Saturday concluded a three-day visit to Cuba, where he discussed trade and other issues with Cuban officials.
“Canada and Cuba have a broad, comprehensive relationship that includes trade, investment and tourism, as well as development assistance and academic exchanges,” said Minister of State Kent. “Our government has made trade across the Americas a priority, and we are seeing tremendous potential for growth in Canadian exports to Cuba and across the hemisphere.”
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International News
Harper becoming deft at Canada–U.S. relations
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
L. Ian MacDonald, The Gazette
Stephen Harper has invested heavily in his relationship with Barack Obama. About $10 billion in the General Motors bailout alone, money which, as the prime minister acknowledged at the time, is not necessarily the kind of "great buying opportunity" he predicted when the stock market crashed a year ago.
But Canada, with 20 per cent of the North American auto industry, was always going to be in for one-fifth of Washington's stake in nationalizing Detroit.
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Villagers welcome Canadian, Afghan troops after Taliban ousted
Monday, November 16, 2009
Matthew Fisher, Canwest News Service
Afghan and Canadian troops captured the Taliban-controlled village of Hajji Baba southwest of Kandahar City on Monday with hardly a shot being fired.
Several hundred villagers came out to welcome the Afghan and Canadian soldiers as guests, after the Taliban apparently fled ahead of what was one of the largest military operations mounted since Paul Martin's government sent Canada to war in this southern province three years ago.
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Canadian landmine initiative saved thousands of lives: report
Sunday, November 15, 2009
Chriss Cobb, Canwest News Service
The Canadian-led treaty to rid the world of landmines has saved thousands of lives and significantly reduced production and use of the devastating, anti-personnel weapons, according to a new international report.
The Ottawa Treaty, which was implemented 10 years ago, made the use and production of landmines illegal in 156 countries that ratified the accord.
According to the 10-year review in Landmines Monitor, unexploded weapons have been cleared from at least 3,200 square kilometres of land in more than 90 countries.
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Vancouver airport unveils plan to deal with Olympic traffic
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
Jeff Lee, Vancouver Sun
Vancouver Airport Authority unveiled major improvements to passenger-handling and airside operations Tuesday as it prepares for unprecedented traffic spurred by the Vancouver 2010 Games.
Saying they had taken lessons learned the hard way from several other Olympic cities, YVR officials beefed up baggage services and pre-boarding clearance and are even creating a temporary third terminal through which many Olympic officials, athletes and media will move.
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Tokyo route to connect Calgary to Asia
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
Gina Teel, Calgary Herald
Air Canada’s new non-stop service linking Calgary to Tokyo is the legacy carrier’s first new route to Asia out of Western Canada in more than a decade, and will connect YYC to every major city in Asia.
The new, thrice-weekly flights between YYC and Tokyo’s Narita International Airport, announced Wednesday, will commence March 27, the result of a decade long-effort by the Calgary Airport Authority to land direct flights connecting Calgary to Asia.
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At last, Kindle is coming to Canada
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
Cathal Kelly, Toronto Star
Five weeks after snubbing Canadian readers, Amazon.com announced today that it will begin shipping the Kindle e-book reader north of the border.
"We know that Canadians are passionate about books and reading, and we're excited to make Kindle available to our customers there," said Ian Freed, vice-president of Kindle, in a statement. "Kindle enables customers around the world, including Canada, to think of a book and start reading it in under 60 seconds."
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Beer: Raise a glass to the great continental divider
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
Beppi Crosariol, Globe and Mail
Nicholas Pashley's new book, Cheers! An Intemperate History of Beer in Canada , started with a single statistic. The top two beers in Canada, he learned to his surprise a couple of years ago, are Budweiser and Coors Light, both American brands that have managed to displace once-dominant names such as Blue, Export and Canadian.
How did it happen? he wondered.
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Business and Trade
Bombardier on track for US$12B French train deal
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
Scott Deveau, Financial Post
Bombardier Inc. has entered exclusive talks with France's national railway to supply the country with hundreds of regional trains in a deal valued at up to $12.6-billion that also serves as a major potential win over its French rival Alstom SA.
The Société Nationale des Chemins de fer français [SNCF] confirmed Wednesday Bombardier was the preferred bidder on the regional rail project.
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Welcome to Iqaluit, G7 — in February
Thursday, November 19, 2009
Theophilos Argitis, Bloomberg
Finance ministers and central bankers from the Group of Seven industrialized nations will meet in Canada’s far north in February, gathering in a place where the ground never thaws and winter blizzards can last for days.
The meeting will take place Feb. 5-6 in Iqaluit, the capital of the northern territory of Nunavut, 195 miles south of the Arctic Circle, Finance Minister Jim Flaherty said Wednesday. It will focus on financial industry reforms, strengthening international institutions and promoting a sustained global recovery, he said.
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Canada least corrupt in the Americas: Report
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
Peter ONeil, Canwest News Service
Canada is viewed as the least corrupt country in the Americas and is an "inspiration" for the U.S. and other neighbours in the hemisphere, Transparency International said in its annual report published Tuesday.
The Berlin-based watchdog ranked Canada eighth globally, in a tie with Australia and the Netherlands, in its index that assesses internal perceptions of corruption in 180 countries.
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Canada inks trade deal with India
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
David Akin, Canwest News Service
Canada and India signed two trade agreements Tuesday that Prime Minister Stephen Harper said will bring the two countries closer together.
The two countries said they intend to establish a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement — a free-trade agreement in all but name — and have set up the first study group that will set the parameters for full-scale negotiations that will likely get underway in about a year.
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GM's outlook improves
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
Sharon Singleton, QMI Agency
General Motors Co., reporting its first set of results since emerging from bankruptcy, said its finances are improving and it plans to speed up the repayment of U.S. and Canadian bailout money.
The Detroit-based company lost $1.2-billion US in the period from July 10, when it began operating as a new company, to Sept. 30. Revenue rose to $28 billion, compared with $4.9 billion in same period a year ago. The figures are not directly comparable with results reported last year as they were not prepared according to generally accepted accounting practices in the U.S., the company said.
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La Caisse investira davantage dans les entreprises d'ici
Mardi 17 novembre 2009
Martin Vallières, La Presse
La Caisse de dépot et placement prépare un plan d'investissement et de soutien financier à l'intention des entreprises québecoises de taille intermédiaire, à bon potentiel de croissance sur le marché international.
Le président de la Caisse de dépôt, Michael Sabia, a fait part de ce projet a l'ouverture d'un colloque d'entrepreneurs, ce matin, au centre-ville de Montréal.
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Canada has more music-industry business than U.S.: Toronto study
Monday, November 16, 2009
Shannon Proudfoot, Canwest News Service
Just call us Nashville North.
Canada is home to five times as many music-industry businesses per capita than the United States, according to new analysis from the University of Toronto's Martin Prosperity Institute.
The Great Musical North has 5.9 record labels, distributors, recording studios and music publishers per 100,000 residents, compared to just 1.2 in the U.S., and Canada's musical talent is more spread out among a diverse range of cities.
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Les profits de Metro en hausse de 18,5%
Mercredi 18 novembre 2009
La Presse
La chaîne d'épicerie Metro (T.MRU.A) a vu ses profits augmenter de plus de 16% et son chiffres d'affaires, de plus de 2%, au quatrième trimestre terminé le 26 septembre dernier, en raison, notamment, de l'amélioration de ses opérations en Ontario où les cinq bannières de supermarchés de la compagnie ont été converties à la bannière Metro.
L'entreprise avoir aussi pu faire croître ses résultats grâce à ses mises en marché bien ciblées.
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Canadian News
H1N1 'no worse' than regular flu: top MD
Monday, November 16, 2009
Sharon Kirkey, The Ottawa Citizen
Despite the recent surge in H1N1 deaths, the nation's chief public health officer says the pandemic virus appears no deadlier than regular seasonal influenza and that there could actually be substantially fewer flu deaths than normal this season.
Although H1N1 is disproportionately infecting more children and otherwise healthy young adults, "the mortality rate from this (H1N1) is no worse than seasonal flu," Dr. David Butler-Jones said.
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Cent ans de solidarité
Mercredi 18 novembre 2009
Stéphane Baillargeon, Le Devoir
Plusieurs publications, des expositions, un colloque universitaire, des fêtes, y compris une soirée-bénéfice en compagnie du premier ministre du Québec, une enveloppe commémorative de la poste, deux émissions de télé de Radio-Canada, dont une version toute spéciale de Tous pour un, et même la lecture de courtes pièces de théâtre écrites spécialement pour l'occasion: les cadeaux des amis, des autres médias et de soi à soi du Devoir ne manqueront pas l'an prochain pour souligner le centième anniversaire du journal. La publication fondée par Henri Bourassa est apparue le 10 janvier 1910.
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Pullinger and Vassanji take GG awards
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
John Barber, Globe and Mail
Canadian writing travelled up the Nile and down the Ganges Tuesday when novelists Kate Pullinger and M.G. Vassanji took top honours at the Governor-General's Literary Awards with books steeped in Eastern themes.
B.C.-born, U.K.-based Pullinger beat favourite daughter Alice Munro to win the English-language fiction award for The Mistress of Nothing, the account of a real-life Victorian noblewoman's sojourn in 19th-century Egypt. Toronto's Vassanji, twice a Giller Prize winner for his novels, took the non-fiction award for a travel book, A Place Within: Rediscovering India.
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Vancouver's artistic side
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
Marsha Lederman, Globe and Mail
You've done the Stanley Park Seawall, watched the sunset over English Bay, shopped on Robson Street. But have you seen the real Vancouver?
Vancouverites who can't afford to drop $1-million on a cozy fixer-upper generally end up in East Vancouver — away from the beaches and the glass condo towers. It's a part of the city many visitors never get to see, and that's a shame. East Vancouver is rich with character, and this weekend it'll be bursting at the seams with art as some 300 artists take part in the 13th Annual Eastside Culture Crawl.
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Beaverbrook Art Gallery still an N.B. treasure
Saturday, November 14, 2009
Kevin Bissett, The Canadian Press
If you want to see some of the finest art in the world you don't need to visit New York, London or Paris — a small but prestigious gallery in New Brunswick may be just what you're looking for.
Nestled along the edge of the St. John River, located across the street from the New Brunswick Legislature in Fredericton, the Beaverbrook Art Gallery is home to paintings by Dali, Turner, Freud, and Gainsborough, to name just a few.
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Sidney Crosby proud, humbled to carry Olympic torch
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
Richard Foot, Canwest News Service
He’s hoisted hockey’s Holy Grail, but carrying the Olympic torch was an experience all its own for NHL star Sidney Crosby.
“Growing up, I always dreamt of playing in the NHL… but when you think of the Olympics, you don’t even think that that would be a possibility,” the young captain of the Stanley Cup Champion Pittsburgh Penguins said Wednesday after ferrying the torch through downtown Halifax.
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Saanich goes public with green plans
Friday, November 13, 2009
Bill Cleverley, Times Colonist
Getting people out of cars will be key to Saanich cutting greenhouse gases by a third over the next 10 years, as spelled out in its draft Climate Action Plan.
"That's certainly one of our greatest challenges," said Coun. Dean Murdock, vice-chairman of Saanich's environment committee.
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Flashpoint wins big at Gemini Awards
Saturday, November 14, 2009
Shannon Montgomery, The Canadian Press
The slick cop drama Flashpoint was the big winner at Saturday's Gemini Awards as it snagged three of the night's top honours in Canadian television, including best drama.
CBC's Rick Mercer Report took the award for best comedy. Citytv's dark comedy Less Than Kind despite leading the sitcom nominations with nine nods, only took home one award, best direction in a comedy program or series.
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Opinion/Editorial
Say no to protectionism everywhere
Friday, November 13, 2009
The Record
The folks still sporting the feisty bumper sticker, “Out of a job yet? Keep buying foreign”, need a reality check.
If they think buying only Canadian-made products will help us climb out of the dirty recessionary pit we have fallen into, they are wrong. If they believe the road to renewed prosperity will be flanked by high protectionist walls that keep foreign-made products out of this country, they are deluding themselves. And a Cambridge company can show them why.
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New York s'amuse à découvrir la poutine
Mercredi 18 novembre 2009
Marie-Claude Lortie, La Presse
Je me suis assise dans le taxi, j'ai lancé ma destination au chauffeur, on a commencé la conversation et, rapidement, il m'a demandé d'où je venais.
« Montréal. Et vous? ai-je rétorqué.
— Pakistan. But I speak French also », a-t-il ajouté, ce qui a évidemment provoqué un « ah oui? » étonné.
Et c'est là, sans que je me doute de rien, qu'il a lancé la phrase-choc: « Ben oui, je ne niaise pas. »
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Banking, pt 2 of 4: Don't fear regulation
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
John Greenwood, Financial Post
As Canadian banks get set to announce their latest round of multibillion-dollar annual profits, their reputation around the world for health and stability has reached new heights. In a four-part series, we look at different views on how Canada's banks can turn domestic strength into international success.
Canada's banks have no need to worry that proposed regulatory changes will put them at a competitive disadvantage to their global peers, said the head of the country's banking regulator.
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