Covers Canadian political, economic and general news as well as breaking news across North America, previously based in London and Moscow and a winner of Reuters’ Treasury scoop of the year.
World
Canada posts biggest trade deficit in almost three years, analyst predicts ‘rough summer’
/cloudfront-us-east-2.images.arcpublishing.com/reuters/NZ7GUAEIT5KNNBOG5WM66BDGWA.jpg "Canada posts biggest trade deficit in almost three years, analyst predicts ‘rough summer’")
A float plane flies past containers and cranes at the Port of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, July 30, 2023. REUTERS/Chris Helgren/File Photo
OTTAWA, Aug 8 (Reuters) – Canada’s trade deficit widened to C$3.73 billion ($2.77 billion) in June from May, the largest in nearly three years, as exports dropped 2.2%, outpacing an 0.5% decline in imports, Statistics Canada said on Tuesday.
Analysts in a Reuters poll had forecast a shortfall of C$2.90 billion. Statscan revised May’s deficit to C$2.68 billion from C$3.44 billion reported initially.
Meena Aier, head of Export Development Canada’s research and analysis department, said exporters faced challenges with high inflation as well as unfavorable cost and credit conditions.
“It’s probably going to be a rough July and a rough summer,” she said in a phone interview.
Canada’s trade deficit with countries other than the United States, its biggest trading partner, widened to an all-time high as month-over-month exports declined 5.5%, while imports were down marginally.
There were broad declines in exports in June, with metal and non-metallic mineral products being the largest drag.
“Weaker global demand and the fading boost from easing supply shortages took a toll on exports in June, confirming that net trade weighed on second-quarter GDP growth,” said Olivia Cross, assistant economist at Capital Economics.
Cross said slumping trade was likely to help pull second quarter annualized growth down to 1.2% from 3.7% in the first quarter, slightly above Statscan’s own estimate of 1%.
The 2.2% drop in exports followed a 3.0% decline in May. The overall trade deficit matched the C$3.73 billion shortfall in October 2020.
The Canadian dollar traded slightly higher at C$1.3477 to the U.S. dollar, or 74.20 U.S. cents, up from C$1.3498 to the U.S. dollar, or 74.09 U.S. cents.
Total exports fell 1.1% by volume, marking the 11th monthly drop in export prices in the past 12 months.
Total imports declined 0.5%, largely due to lower imports of energy products as well as pharmaceuticals. Imports of unwrought gold jumped, and nearly offset declines in other product categories. By volume, imports were up 0.9%.
Statscan said the impact of a 13-day strike by western Canadian dock workers was likely to be reflected in July data. It also said severe flooding in the province of Nova Scotia could have an impact.
($1 = 1.3453 Canadian dollars)
Reporting by Ismail Shakil in Ottawa; Editing by David Ljunggren, Bernadette Baum and Jonathan Oatis
Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
Italian state railways Ferrovie dello Stato plans to invest 1.3 billion euros ($1.36 billion) in a photovoltaic plant with an initial 1 gigawatt (GW) capacity that would cover 19% of its energy needs by 2029, the CEO said in a newspaper interview.
World
Christmas in Puerto Rico is a 45-day celebration with caroling, festive decorations, family feasts and more
Christmas, Navidad in Puerto Rico, extends far beyond Dec. 25.
The island proudly proclaims itself as having the “longest holiday season in the world,” according to the website Discover Puerto Rico.
On average, the holiday festivities in Puerto Rico last about 45 days, per the source, commencing right after Thanksgiving, and stretching all the way through mid-January.
The Christmas season in Puerto Rico typically lasts around 45 days. (iStock)
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The holiday season in Puerto Rico is full of rich traditions beloved by families.
One tradition those who visit Puerto Rico will immediately notice during the holiday season is decorations.
In Puerto Rico, decorations are typically put up by Thanksgiving, and kept up until the season concludes in mid-January, with opportune picture moments at every corner.
Parrandas, Christmas caroling, is a holiday staple.
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Carolers choose houses of family and friends to visit, typically starting around 10 p.m., performing aguinaldos (traditional Christmas songs), with not only their voices, but often with instruments as well, according to Discover Puerto Rico.
The group you begin caroling with is likely not the same group you end with.
In Puerto Rico, when carolers visit a house, they’ll often stop inside for conversation, food and drink before moving to the next residence.
Coquito is a popular beverage enjoyed during the holiday season in Puerto Rico. Coconut, vanilla and rum are among the ingredients. (Mayra Beltran/Houston Chronicle via Getty Images)
Usually, the residences of the house visited will join the group for the next house, according to Discover Puerto Rico.
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A night of serenading loved ones can last quite a while, often stretching into the early morning hours of the following day, according to the source.
The biggest day of the holiday season in Puerto Rico actually isn’t Christmas, but instead, the night before.
In Puerto Rico, Dec. 24 is Nochebuena. On that day, loved ones gather for the exchange of gifts, caroling and a large feast.
Many families will also attend a midnight Mass on the day, known as Misa de Gallo.
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After Christmas passes, the festivities go on in Puerto Rico.
Another big event in the holiday lineup is Three Kings Day on Jan. 6, a holiday that “commemorates the visit that the Three Wise Men paid to Jesus after his birth,” according to Discover Puerto Rico.
On the eve of the day, children fill up a shoebox with grass to be left for camels to munch on while the Three Kings leave behind gifts for them, according to PuertoRico.com.
For a particularly festive Three Kings Day, Juana Díaz is the place to go, as it hosts the largest celebration in Puerto Rico for the holiday. In Juana Díaz, there is an annual festival and parade in honor of Three Kings Day that brings together over 25,000 people every year, according to Discover Puerto Rico.
Gifts are primarily exchanged between loved ones on Christmas Eve in Puerto Rico. (iStock)
Then, eight days later is Octavitas, a post-holiday celebration where families get together and celebrate one last time for the season.
The end of the holiday season is marked with the San Sebastián Street Festival.
This festival, spanning over multiple days, takes place in Old San Juan, and is filled with live music, dancing, shopping and parades.
Twin-engine plane crashed in largely residential neighborhood of Gramado shortly after takeoff, authorities say.
A small plane has crashed into a tourist hotspot in southern Brazil, killing all 10 people on board and injuring more than a dozen people on the ground, officials have said.
The twin-engine Piper PA-42-1000 hit the chimney of a home and the second floor of a different house before crashing into a shop in a largely residential neighbourhood of Gramado shortly after takeoff from Canela, Brazil’s Civil Defense agency said on Sunday.
Rio Grande do Sul Governor Eduardo Leite told a news conference that the aircraft’s owner and pilot, Luiz Claudio Galeazzi, was killed along with nine members of his family.
Leite said that 17 people on the ground were injured, 12 of whom were still receiving treatment in hospital.
Galeazzi’s company, Galeazzi & Associados, confirmed that its CEO and Galeazzi’s wife and three daughters had died in the crash.
“Luiz Galeazzi will be forever remembered for his dedication to his family and for his remarkable career as a leader of Galeazzi & Associados,” the company said in a post on LinkedIn.
“In this moment of immense pain, Galeazzi & Associados is deeply grateful for the expressions of solidarity and affection received from friends, colleagues and the community. We also sympathize with all those affected by the accident in the region.”
Gramado, located in the Serra Gaucha mountains, is a popular destination for vacationers, especially during the Christmas season.
The crash comes a little more than a year after Brazil suffered its worst air disaster in nearly two decades when a twin-engine plane crashed in the southeastern city of Vinhedo, killing all 62 people on board.
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