National Business

OTTAWA — Transport Canada estimates as much as $3.9 billion in trade activity was halted because of border blockades across the country related to protests against COVID-19 restrictions last winter, a public inquiry heard Wednesday.

WINNIPEG — Manitoba Hydro is asking the provincial regulator, the Public Utilities Board, to approve electricity rate increases of 3.5 per cent in each of the next two years.

PRZEWODOW, Poland (AP) — NATO member Poland and the head of the military alliance both said Wednesday that a missile strike in Polish farmland that killed two people appeared to be unintentional and was probably launched by air defenses in neighborin

NEW YORK (AP) — Amazon has begun mass layoffs in its corporate ranks, becoming the latest tech company to trim its workforce amid rising fears about the wider economic environment.

NEW YORK — Retailers and technology companies led a broad slide for stocks Wednesday after a dismal financial report from Target overshadowed a positive retail sector report from the government. The S&P 500 fell 0.

TORONTO — Canada's main stock index slipped Wednesday as October inflation data was released, pulled lower by losses in energy and metals, while U.S. markets were also down. The S&P/TSX composite index closed down 36.82 points at 19,957.96.

TORONTO — Some of the most active companies traded Wednesday on the Toronto Stock Exchange: Toronto Stock Exchange (19,957.96, down 36.82): Manulife Financial Corp. (TSX:MFC). Financials. Down 16 cents, or 0.68 per cent, to $23.33 on 19.

Two of Canada’s grocers say food suppliers are continuing to pass along new cost increases, signalling higher food prices will persist into 2023. Loblaw Cos. Ltd. and Metro Inc.

WASHINGTON — Donald Trump, the twice-impeached former U.S. president, tossed his red ball cap back into the ring Tuesday — an exercise some observers say is as much about judicial self-preservation as it is a brazen display of political ambition.

NEW YORK (AP) — A host of Hollywood and sports celebrities including Larry David and Tom Brady were named as defendants in a class-action lawsuit against cryptocurrency exchange FTX, arguing that their celebrity status made them culpable for promotin