Business

Steaks on a grill in New York. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer, File)

Meat-eaters still dominate with flexitarians on the rise, says survey of Canadians

Flexibility of allowing meat in the diet grows in popularity

Steaks on a grill in New York. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer, File)
Aviation analytics company Cirium says Canada’s two biggest airlines ranked low in terms of on-time performance this year. The data firm says that among the ten biggest airlines in Canada and the U.S., Air Canada and WestJet Airlines Ltd. ranked worst and second-worst for their punctuality. An Air Canada flight taxis to a runway as a WestJet flight takes off at Vancouver International Airport, in Richmond, B.C., on March 20, 2020. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck

Canadian airlines come in at low end of on-time performance: analytics firm

WestJet and Air Canada only managed on-time arrivals for around 40 to 45 per cent of their flights

Aviation analytics company Cirium says Canada’s two biggest airlines ranked low in terms of on-time performance this year. The data firm says that among the ten biggest airlines in Canada and the U.S., Air Canada and WestJet Airlines Ltd. ranked worst and second-worst for their punctuality. An Air Canada flight taxis to a runway as a WestJet flight takes off at Vancouver International Airport, in Richmond, B.C., on March 20, 2020. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck
Credit cards are seen in Montreal on December 12, 2012. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Ryan Remiorz

‘Death by a thousand cuts’: How to take stock of your subscriptions

Streaming services, meal delivery boxes and music platforms can add up quick

Credit cards are seen in Montreal on December 12, 2012. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Ryan Remiorz
A pumpjack draws out oil and gas from a well head as the sun sets near Calgary, Alta., Sunday, Oct. 9, 2022. Canadian oil and gas companies are expected to increase spending in 2023, but experts say expect another year of modest growth and not a return to boom time levels. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jeff McIntosh

Canadian oilpatch likely to surpass 2022’s production record, but only slightly

Experts say 2023 will likely be another year of modest growth

A pumpjack draws out oil and gas from a well head as the sun sets near Calgary, Alta., Sunday, Oct. 9, 2022. Canadian oil and gas companies are expected to increase spending in 2023, but experts say expect another year of modest growth and not a return to boom time levels. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jeff McIntosh
Robinson’s Outdoor Store co-owners Erin Boggs and Matt King show off some of the store’s fly fishing gear. The store expects a busy Boxing Day this year as it will be the first time they have been able to go all-out on the sales event since the pandemic started. (Justin Samanski-Langille/News Staff)

Boxing Day expected to be lined up out the door at Victoria outdoor store

Robinson’s Outdoor Store sees the event as way to thank community for pandemic support

Robinson’s Outdoor Store co-owners Erin Boggs and Matt King show off some of the store’s fly fishing gear. The store expects a busy Boxing Day this year as it will be the first time they have been able to go all-out on the sales event since the pandemic started. (Justin Samanski-Langille/News Staff)
FILE - The Activision Blizzard Booth during the Electronic Entertainment Expo in Los Angeles, June 13, 2013. Microsoft is headed for a battle with the Federal Trade Commission, filing a formal challenge Thursday, Dec. 22, 2022, over whether the U.S. will block the tech giant's planned takeover of video game company Activision Blizzard. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong, File)

Microsoft will fight US over $68.7B Activision Blizzard deal

Microsoft is headed for a battle with the Federal Trade Commission over…

FILE - The Activision Blizzard Booth during the Electronic Entertainment Expo in Los Angeles, June 13, 2013. Microsoft is headed for a battle with the Federal Trade Commission, filing a formal challenge Thursday, Dec. 22, 2022, over whether the U.S. will block the tech giant's planned takeover of video game company Activision Blizzard. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong, File)
A worker re-stocks shelves in the bakery and bread aisle at an Atlantic Superstore in Halifax, N.S., on Friday, Jan. 28, 2022. How those wheat kernels end up in a loaf of bread — and why prices have risen this year — is an odyssey involving growers and grain handlers, rail cars and flour mills, and bakeries and supermarkets. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Kelly Clark

From seed to store: A look at the rising cost of bread

Benchmark price of wheat is set on exchanges all over the world

A worker re-stocks shelves in the bakery and bread aisle at an Atlantic Superstore in Halifax, N.S., on Friday, Jan. 28, 2022. How those wheat kernels end up in a loaf of bread — and why prices have risen this year — is an odyssey involving growers and grain handlers, rail cars and flour mills, and bakeries and supermarkets. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Kelly Clark
FILE - Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk arrives on the red carpet for the Axel Springer media award in Berlin on Dec. 1, 2020. Musk says he plays on remaining as Twitter’s CEO until he can find someone willing to replace him in the job. Musk's announcement came after millions of Twitter users asked him to step down in an unscientific poll the billionaire himself created and promised to abide by. (Hannibal Hanschke/Pool Photo via AP, File)

Musk says he’ll be Twitter CEO until a replacement is found

Elon Musk said Tuesday that he plans on remaining as Twitter’s CEO…

FILE - Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk arrives on the red carpet for the Axel Springer media award in Berlin on Dec. 1, 2020. Musk says he plays on remaining as Twitter’s CEO until he can find someone willing to replace him in the job. Musk's announcement came after millions of Twitter users asked him to step down in an unscientific poll the billionaire himself created and promised to abide by. (Hannibal Hanschke/Pool Photo via AP, File)
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau speaks at the General Motors CAMI production plant in Ingersoll, Ont., on December 5, 2022. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Nicole Osborne

Canada moves to mandate electric vehicle sales starting in 2026

One-fifth of all passenger cars, SUVs and trucks sold in Canada in…

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau speaks at the General Motors CAMI production plant in Ingersoll, Ont., on December 5, 2022. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Nicole Osborne
People pass a large Christmas tree as they go shopping on Christmas Eve at a mall in Ottawa on Dec. 24, 2020. A new report from Deloitte Canada says holiday spending in Canada is expected to drop this year as inflation shrinks consumer buying power and economic uncertainty looms over household finances. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Justin Tang

Retail spending in Canada shows signs of slowdown amid higher inflation, interest

Statistics Canada’s early figures for November indicated a weakening of spending on goods

People pass a large Christmas tree as they go shopping on Christmas Eve at a mall in Ottawa on Dec. 24, 2020. A new report from Deloitte Canada says holiday spending in Canada is expected to drop this year as inflation shrinks consumer buying power and economic uncertainty looms over household finances. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Justin Tang
Jamie Cygielman, right, general manager and president at American Girl, leaves a youngster browsing the company’s latest holiday showcase doll set, Friday, Dec. 2, 2022, in New York. Cygielman said roughly half its sales went to adults after a relaunch of the first six American Girl dolls in May 2021 to celebrate its 35th anniversary. (AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews)

Not just for kids: Toymakers aim more products at grown-ups

Ages 18 and older represented 14% of U.S. toy industry sales for the 12 months ending September 2022

Jamie Cygielman, right, general manager and president at American Girl, leaves a youngster browsing the company’s latest holiday showcase doll set, Friday, Dec. 2, 2022, in New York. Cygielman said roughly half its sales went to adults after a relaunch of the first six American Girl dolls in May 2021 to celebrate its 35th anniversary. (AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews)
St. Lawrence chef J-C Poirier is seen in an undated handout photo. The Vancouver-based chef, restaurateur and author is implementing a series of changes intended to improve the conditions of employment at his restaurant in the New Year. THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO-Carlo Ricci

Pre-paying for meals and shorter work week among changes in restaurant rebirth scene

Pent-up demand appears to be fuelling a hearty appetite for restaurant dining this holiday season

St. Lawrence chef J-C Poirier is seen in an undated handout photo. The Vancouver-based chef, restaurateur and author is implementing a series of changes intended to improve the conditions of employment at his restaurant in the New Year. THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO-Carlo Ricci
FILE- In this Oct. 6, 2018, file photo Henry Hailey, 10, plays one of the online “Fortnite” game in the early morning hours in the basement of his Chicago home. (AP Photo/Martha Irvine, File)

Fortnite creator Epic Games to pay record FTC fine over violating children’s privacy

As part of its agreement, Epic must adopt stricter privacy settings for minors

FILE- In this Oct. 6, 2018, file photo Henry Hailey, 10, plays one of the online “Fortnite” game in the early morning hours in the basement of his Chicago home. (AP Photo/Martha Irvine, File)
FILE - Gig workers call for better working conditions in San Francisco on June 18, 2019. (Kevin N. Hume/S.F. Examiner)

Inside gig work: Trading flexibility for uncertainty, risk and racism

Drivers say they’ve been injured and assaulted, and worked shifts where they lost out on money

  • Dec 19, 2022
FILE - Gig workers call for better working conditions in San Francisco on June 18, 2019. (Kevin N. Hume/S.F. Examiner)
FILE - A Twitter logo hangs outside the company’s San Francisco offices on Tuesday, Nov. 1, 2022. The Washington Post’s Taylor Lorenz has become the latest journalist to be banned from Twitter. Lorenz says she and another Post technology reporter, Drew Harwell, were researching an article concerning Twitter CEO Elon Musk. (AP Photo/Noah Berger, File)

Elon Musk Twitter poll ends with users seeking his departure

More than half of the 17.5 million respondents voted “yes” to Musk’s Twitter question

FILE - A Twitter logo hangs outside the company’s San Francisco offices on Tuesday, Nov. 1, 2022. The Washington Post’s Taylor Lorenz has become the latest journalist to be banned from Twitter. Lorenz says she and another Post technology reporter, Drew Harwell, were researching an article concerning Twitter CEO Elon Musk. (AP Photo/Noah Berger, File)
People are silhouetted as they sit in a bar having a drink in Toronto on Wednesday, March 30, 2022. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Nathan Denette

Non-alcoholic beer, wine and spirits on the rise as demand grows

More people becoming ‘sober curious,’ say industry experts

People are silhouetted as they sit in a bar having a drink in Toronto on Wednesday, March 30, 2022. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Nathan Denette
A real estate sign is pictured in Vancouver, B.C., Tuesday, June 12, 2018. A new report says Canada’s housing market is still firmly in correction mode, despite having slowed in recent months. THE CANADIAN PRESS Jonathan Hayward

Ontario and British Columbia headed for a buyer’s market, RBC says

High interest rates will hold back shoppers in other parts of the country

A real estate sign is pictured in Vancouver, B.C., Tuesday, June 12, 2018. A new report says Canada’s housing market is still firmly in correction mode, despite having slowed in recent months. THE CANADIAN PRESS Jonathan Hayward
FILE - A swan stands between dumped plastic bottles and waste at the Danube river in Belgrade, Serbia, April 18, 2022. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic, File)

Watchdog group casts doubt on Amazon’s claims of reducing plastic

Oceana estimates Amazon’s plastic waste jumped from 599 million pounds in 2020 to 709 million

FILE - A swan stands between dumped plastic bottles and waste at the Danube river in Belgrade, Serbia, April 18, 2022. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic, File)
Coho salmon swim at the Fisheries and Oceans Canada Capilano River Hatchery, in North Vancouver, on Friday July 5, 2019. The federal government is offering to buy Pacific salmon commercial fishing licences off anyone looking to get out of the industry as it tries to protect dwindling salmon stocks. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck

Ottawa aims to reduce size of salmon fishing industry by buying licences

$123 million earmarked for voluntary retirement program

Coho salmon swim at the Fisheries and Oceans Canada Capilano River Hatchery, in North Vancouver, on Friday July 5, 2019. The federal government is offering to buy Pacific salmon commercial fishing licences off anyone looking to get out of the industry as it tries to protect dwindling salmon stocks. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck
Employees and their guests attend the holiday dinner and karaoke party for Ajinomoto Health and Nutrition North America employees Friday, Dec. 9, 2022, in Schaumburg, Ill. Say goodbye to virtual wine tasting, and practice your karaoke. Company holiday parties are making a comeback. After more than two years of working in pajama bottoms and clinking glasses over Zoom, many office workers are yearning for a bit of glamour, or at least a sense of normalcy. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)

Company holiday parties are back — but with some restraint

After two years of Zoom, many workers seem to be yearning for a bit of glamour

Employees and their guests attend the holiday dinner and karaoke party for Ajinomoto Health and Nutrition North America employees Friday, Dec. 9, 2022, in Schaumburg, Ill. Say goodbye to virtual wine tasting, and practice your karaoke. Company holiday parties are making a comeback. After more than two years of working in pajama bottoms and clinking glasses over Zoom, many office workers are yearning for a bit of glamour, or at least a sense of normalcy. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)
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