Latest news with #SeanKilpatrick
CTV News
2 days ago
- Business
- CTV News
EU to triple travel permit fee to 20 euros
Travellers wait in line at the Ottawa International Airport in Ottawa on Thursday, July 3, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick The digital travel permit for foreigners to enter the European Union should cost 20 euros, almost triple the original planned fee, under a proposal published Friday. The adjustment to the yet-to-be implemented ETIAS scheme for visa-exempt nationals comes as the European Commission seeks to boost its financial resources to fund an array of priorities from defence to agriculture. The change reflects inflation and additional operational costs, the commission said. 'It will also bring the cost for a travel authorisation to the EU in line with similar travel authorisation programmes,' the EU's top executive body said. Adopted in 2018, the European Travel Information and Authorisation System (ETIAS) regulation originally envisaged a fee of seven euros. Britain's equivalent, known as ETA, comes with a 16 pound fee, while the United States' ESTA permit costs US$21. Obtainable online, the European Union's ETIAS permit will be required for the bloc's 27 countries with the exception of Ireland, as well as for Norway, Iceland, Switzerland and Liechtenstein. The permit, valid for three years, will be required for non-EU nationals from countries whose citizens do not need a visa for short stays in Europe, such as Canada, Britain and the United States. Those aged under 18 or over 70 years will be exempt from the fee. Brussels said the scheme was created to identify security, irregular migration and other risks as well as to facilitate border crossing for regular travellers. But its implementation, which was supposed to go hand-in-hand with a new automated border check system, has suffered from delays. The European Parliament and member states have two months to review the new 20-euro fee, which will enter into effect as soon as ETIAS becomes operational -- now expected for the last quarter of 2026. This week the commission proposed a boosted two-trillion-euro long-term budget for 2028-2034, which has already upset some of the EU countries that will have to chip in most of the money. As part of the blueprint, which is subject to negotiation, Brussels said it will seek to raise about 58 billion euros a year collecting money directly through measures like its carbon border tax and a levy on electronic waste.
CTV News
3 days ago
- Business
- CTV News
Foreign investors continue to reduce exposure to Canadian equities: StatCan
Statistics Canada building and signs are pictured in Ottawa on July 3, 2019. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick New data suggests that Canadian securities are falling out of favour with foreign investors, while Canadians are investing more of their money abroad. On Thursday, Statistics Canada released tracking data on Canada's international securities transactions in May, which found there was 'strong foreign divestment in Canadian shares' during the month. 'Foreign investors reduced their holdings of Canadian securities by $2.8 billion in May, a fourth consecutive monthly divestment,' the agency said in a release. 'In May, non-resident investors reduced their exposure to Canadian shares by $11.4 billion. On a sector basis, the divestment in May was widespread, led by shares from the energy and mining, management of companies and enterprises, as well as manufacturing sectors.' Foreign investors did, however, increase their holdings of Canadian government bonds, acquiring $13.1 billion compared to a $25.1 billion divestment in April. 'The activity in May reflected foreign acquisitions of provincial (+$8.0 billion) and federal (+$6.9 billion) government bonds, which were moderated by a divestment of $4.2 billion in private corporate bonds,' said StatCan. Despite the overall divestment in Canadian shares, Canada's benchmark stock index, the S&P/TSX composite, increased by 5.4 per cent in May compared to April after three consecutive monthly declines. Canadians move money out Canadian investors, meanwhile, increased their exposure to foreign securities by $13.4 billion in May, up significantly from $4.1 billion the month before, according to StatCan. 'In May, investors targeted U.S. shares, while reducing their exposure to U.S. government debt instruments,' the agency said. 'Canadian investors bought $11.5 billion of foreign shares in May, the largest investment since February. Sizable acquisitions of U.S. shares (+$14.2 billion) in May were moderated by sales of non-U.S. shares (-$2.8 billion).' The benchmark American stock index, the S&P 500, increased by more than six per cent in May compared to April after it, like the TSX, had declined for three straight months prior. StatCan said that when it came to Canadian purchases of foreign debt securities in May, investors mainly purchased U.S. corporate bonds and non-U.S. bonds, while reducing their holdings of U.S. government bonds and Treasury bills. As a result of increased investment abroad and the foreign divestment of Canadian securities, Canada saw a net outflow of $16.2 billion from its economy in May, marking 'a fourth consecutive month of net outflows, bringing the total to $83.9 billion,' said StatCan.
Toronto Sun
5 days ago
- General
- Toronto Sun
CRTC to look into improving Canada's public alerting system in new consultation
Published Jul 15, 2025 • 1 minute read A person navigates to the on-line social-media pages of the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) on a cell phone in Ottawa on Monday, May 17, 2021. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick GATINEAU — Canada's telecommunications regulator is launching a consultation aimed at improving the national public alerting system that is used to warn Canadians about emergency situations such as severe weather and other concerns to public safety. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account The CRTC says it wants to improve the accessibility of alerts by reviewing how they are distributed in Canada, including whether they should be available in languages that reflect local communities. The commission is also reviewing the current testing schedule, potential wireless public alerting gaps across the country, and the accessibility of the system for persons with disabilities. The system, used by emergency management authorities across Canada, is a shared responsibility between federal, provincial and territorial governments and agencies. The CRTC requires cellphone, cable and satellite television providers, along with radio and television broadcasters, to distribute emergency alerts to the public. Members of the public can submit feedback to the CRTC until Oct. 14 through online forms, written letters or via fax. RECOMMENDED VIDEO NFL Editorial Cartoons Toronto & GTA Toronto & GTA Columnists
Toronto Sun
7 days ago
- Business
- Toronto Sun
Economists expect inflation ticked up in June after surprise jobs gain
Published Jul 13, 2025 • 3 minute read Statistics Canada is set to release June inflation figures on Tuesday. A shopper pushes a shopping carts as they leave a Real Canadian Superstore in Ottawa on Tuesday, June 25, 2024. Photo by Sean Kilpatrick / THE CANADIAN PRESS OTTAWA — Economists expect the pace of inflation picked up in June as the Bank of Canada continues to search for tariff impacts in the price data. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account Statistics Canada is set to report consumer price index data for June on Tuesday. CIBC expects the release will show the annual pace of inflation rose a tenth of a percentage point to 1.8 per cent. Katherine Judge, CIBC's senior economist, said in an interview that she expects goods inflation was fuelling price pressures in the month. Some of that can be tied to the impact of Canada's tariff dispute with the United States, she said. On the opposite end, Judge is looking for relief on rental prices to help take some of the steam out of shelter inflation. 'The rent index has not yet picked up drops in rents that we've seen for vacant units across the country, so that's something that will partly offset tariff impacts,' she said. Your noon-hour look at what's happening in Toronto and beyond. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Please try again This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. The June CPI release will be the Bank of Canada's last look at inflation before its next interest rate decision set for July 30. Financial markets are broadly expecting the central bank to hold its policy rate steady for a third consecutive time at that meeting. LSEG Data & Analytics reported that odds of a quarter-point cut dropped to just 13 per cent as of Friday afternoon after StatCan reported an unexpected gain of 83,000 jobs in June. Tiff Macklem, the governor of the central bank, said last month that monetary policymakers were noticing some 'unusual volatility' in the inflation figures. He also said underlying inflation could be 'firmer' than the central bank first thought, and might be reflecting higher costs from tariffs between Canada and the United States. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Royal Bank of Canada expects the annual pace of inflation accelerated to 1.9 per cent in June. RBC senior economist Claire Fan said she's expecting core inflation will still be stubborn in June — hovering at the top end of the central bank's target band of one to three per cent. She said food inflation is one area that RBC expects will continue to push up the consumer price index. While the Bank of Canada and other economic watchers have been scouring price data for evidence of pressure from the U.S. trade dispute, Fan said she's not expecting 'a lot of tariff impact to show up yet.' Inflation data is also backward-looking by nature, so Fan said she's leaning more on the Bank of Canada surveys of businesses and consumers set for next week. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. These quarterly surveys give the central bank a sense of how businesses are handling tariff pressures and how quickly they might pass costs along to consumers. Deputy governor Sharon Kozicki signalled in a speech last month that the Bank of Canada is relying more on alternative data sources such as surveys and restaurant reservations to cut through some of the uncertainty in traditional economic data. 'It's a very limited amount of our data that we're seeing on inflation right now, but the (business outlook) survey historically has been a really useful gauge of future expectations,' Fan said. Judge said that while she would normally put more weight on the CPI data, she argued StatCan's surprisingly strong June jobs report will likely put the central bank on hold until September. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Benjamin Reitzes, BMO's managing director of Canadian rates and macro strategist, said in a note Friday that he expects headline inflation rose to two per cent in June. He pointed to rising food and transportation costs, and less rosy comparisons to last year's price data, as driving the acceleration. Noting that the breadth of inflation widened in the May CPI figures, Reitzes said the Bank of Canada will be looking for signs of a reversal last month to restore confidence that price pressures could be easing. 'Following the huge June job gain, it will take an outsized move lower in underlying inflation for the BoC to even consider cutting in July,' he wrote. NHL Editorial Cartoons World Toronto & GTA Toronto & GTA
National Post
11-07-2025
- Business
- National Post
Carney to recuse himself from dealings with over 100 companies in sprawling government conflict screen
Prime Minister Mark Carney. Photo by Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press/File OTTAWA — Prime Minister Mark Carney will have to recuse himself from any discussions directly involving Brookfield Asset Management, payment processing giant Stripe and dozens of companies owned or controlled by them as part of an extensive conflict-of-interest screen. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS Enjoy the latest local, national and international news. Exclusive articles by Conrad Black, Barbara Kay and others. Plus, special edition NP Platformed and First Reading newsletters and virtual events. Unlimited online access to National Post. National Post ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. Support local journalism. SUBSCRIBE FOR MORE ARTICLES Enjoy the latest local, national and international news. Exclusive articles by Conrad Black, Barbara Kay and others. Plus, special edition NP Platformed and First Reading newsletters and virtual events. Unlimited online access to National Post. National Post ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. Support local journalism. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors In a disclosure posted Friday afternoon on the Ethics Commissioner's website, Carney said he had agreed with the watchdog's office to set up a conflict-of-interest screen between himself and Brookfield Asset Management, Brookfield Corporation, Stripe Inc. and any of 100 other companies owned or controlled by them at the time he set up a blind trust to oversee his assets. Before jumping into politics, Carney was chairman of Brookfield Asset Management, which has US$1 trillion in assets under management, and also helped lead efforts to raise capital for two major Brookfield clean energy funds. He was also on Stripe's board of directors. Your guide to the world of Canadian politics. (Subscriber exclusive on Saturdays) By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Please try again 'This screen will prevent me from giving preferential treatment to any of the Companies while I exercise my official powers, duties, and functions as a reporting public office holder,' reads Carney's declaration. The screen means that Carney cannot be involved in 'any official matters or decision-making processes' that would further either his or the interests of the 103 companies, many of which operate in the renewable energy and real estate sectors. 'That's the largest scope I've ever heard of,' commented Ian Stedman, a government ethics specialist who previously worked for Ontario's Integrity Commissioner. 'I think that they're going to have to get creative to make administration of this screen efficient,' added Stedman, now an associate professor at York University. The screen will be administered by Carney's chief of staff, Marc-André Blanchard, and clerk of the Privy Council, Michael Sabia, respectively. If he is made aware that a matter being discussed with him involves his ethics screen, he must remove himself from the room and make a public declaration of recusal. But the prime minister isn't barred from all discussions that may impact those companies. Carney's screen contains a caveat where he can participate in discussions or decisions on matters that broadly affect any of the 103 companies if they are part of a larger group, 'unless those interests are disproportionate to the other members of the class.' It was not immediately clear what represents a 'disproportionate' interest. Stedman said that will be a key question for both administrators of Carney's screen. The ethics screen risks posing significant implementation challenges, if only because of the sheer scope of the prime minister's responsibilities combined with the large number of companies to be screened.
