Direct Loan Canada Blog

Economists are forecasting Canada’s inflation rate likely ticked up last month, but that isn’t expected to set off alarm bells as long as underlying price pressures ease.
Source: ctv business
Economists expect December inflation ticked up, trend still points to slowdown

Microsoft is back on top. After trailing behind Apple for the majority of the past decade, Microsoft is the world’s most valuable publicly traded company as of market close on Friday. The tech giant’s stock (MSFT) closed at US$388.47 a share on Friday, giving it a market capitalization of US$2.89 trillion.
Source: ctv business
Move over Apple: Microsoft is now the most valuable publicly traded company

An Ontario mother is warning others not to search for Ticketmaster contact information in Google after she was scammed out of about $600.
Source: ctv business
Ontario mother issues warning after losing 0 worth of gift cards in Ticketmaster scam

The barista tipped the jug of smooth, foamy milk over the latte, pouring slowly at first, then lifting and tilting the jug like a choreographed dance to paint the petals of a tulip.
Source: ctv business
Robot baristas and AI chefs caused a stir at CES 2024 as casino union workers fear for their jobs

McKesson Corp. is planning to sell Canadian drugstore chain Rexall Pharmacy Group, a source familiar with the process told Reuters on Friday, seven years after the U.S. drug distributor bought the business for about $3 billion.
Source: ctv business
U.S. drug retailer McKesson seeks buyers for Canada’s Rexall Pharmacy: source

The biggest banks in the United States posted strong profits last year, helped by higher interest rates and a strong economy, despite having to deal the lingering industry costs of last year’s banking crisis that caused the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank.
Source: ctv business
Banks upbeat on U.S. consumer despite bank profit declines, inflation and rising debt levels

Experts say the escalating risk of severe weather events is one of several factors putting pressure on insurance companies and potentially increasing premiums for consumers.
Source: ctv business
Severe weather events threaten to drive insurance premiums higher: expert

Higher-income workers and their employers are paying more in Canada Pension Plan contributions because of changes that took effect Jan. 1.
Source: ctv business
Why your first paycheque of the year was less than expected

Panama’s government on Thursday inspected a huge copper mine shut down after the country’s Supreme Court ruled in November that the government’s concession with a Canadian mining company was unconstitutional. The deal had triggered widespread street protests.
Source: ctv business
Panamanian commission visits copper mine shut down after court invalidated concession

The best CES products pierce through the haze of marketing hype at the Las Vegas gadget show to reveal innovations that could improve lives. The worst could harm us or our society and the planet in such ‘innovatively bad’ ways that a panel of self-described dystopia experts has judged them ‘Worst in Show.’
Source: ctv business
Here are the ‘Worst in Show’ CES products, according to consumer and privacy advocates