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Store-level sales across toy industry ‘disappointing’ in Oct: Spin Master

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:11:20 GMT

TORONTO — Spin Master Corp. executives say the lead-up to the usually bustling holiday sales season has so far wound up below expectations.Across the toy industry, October store sales have been “disappointing” and “well below retailers’ plans,” said Mark Segal, chief financial officer at the Toronto-based toy manufacturer.“Consumers are under pressure and whilst consumer spend remains high overall, consumers are allocating their spend to travel and experiences,” he said on a Thursday call with analysts.Segal’s observations about the market come as Spin Master gears up for its typically busiest season of the year. The company’s Paw Patrol, Bakugan, Hatchimals, Rubik’s Cube and Gund toys often take top spots on wish lists, generating higher sales and revenues than other times of year.However, this shopping season has come with stubbornly high inflation, making consumers think twice about purchases or hunt for deals more than they m...

Tax avoidance: Canadian companies transferred $120B to Luxembourg, study says

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:11:20 GMT

MONTREAL — A Quebec research institute says some of Canada’s biggest companies have transferred billions of dollars in profits to Luxembourg to avoid paying domestic taxes.The research published today by IRIS says 59 Canadian companies — including 33 headquartered in Quebec — transferred some $119.8 billion in net profits to the European low-tax country over a period of about 10 years.The companies operate in several sectors including finance, natural resources, food and technology, and include big names such as Thomson Reuters, Alimentation Couche-Tard and Saputo Inc.The study notes that tax avoidance strategies aren’t illegal but violate the “spirit” of the law because they permit companies to pay ultra-low taxes in jurisdictions other than where the majority of their economic activities occur.Representatives from Thomson Reuters, Couche-Tard and Saputo Inc. were not immediately available for comment.The researchers say some companies on the list have recei...

15-year-old charged in armed carjacking in Burlington

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:11:20 GMT

A 15-year-old is facing half a dozen charges in connection with an armed carjacking in Burlington last weekend. Police in Halton Region say the victim was in their SUV at Appleby Arena, just off Appleby Line and the Queen Elizabeth Way, when they were approached by a group of three males in a pickup truck just after 3 p.m. on Oct. 29. Police say the males exited the vehicle, pointed a gun at the driver and demanded their keys. They then fled in the stolen SUV and pickup truck. Investigators say the SUV was later located in Hamilton and the suspects were observed by police near the stolen vehicle in a white Mercedes. When officers moved in to make an arrest, the suspects fled the scene striking the police car in the process. Police later located and arrested a 15-year-old who has been charged with robbery with a firearm, three counts of failing to comply with a youth probation order and two counts of possession of a firearm contrary to a prohibition order. The teen cannot be named un...

Canadian man in Gaza says Ottawa has asked him to be prepared to leave with family

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:11:20 GMT

A Canadian man trying to get out of Gaza with his family says Global Affairs Canada has asked him to gather his documents and be prepared to leave at any moment through the enclave’s border crossing with Egypt. Mahmoud Nasser says his wife, who has a Brazilian passport, got a call from Global Affairs today during which an official confirmed that Nasser, his wife, his Canadian father and brother and his Palestinian sister-in-law were all registered with Ottawa to evacuate. Nasser, who is sheltering at a refugee camp that’s a 20-minute drive away from the Rafah border crossing, says the official told them to be ready to leave and that a bus would be waiting for Canadians and their families on the Egyptian side once they were allowed to cross. Nasser says Global Affairs did not provide a date or time for a potential evacuation but told his family to watch a list being published online by the General Authority for Border Crossings in Gaza that has been detaili...

Canadian prisons ‘disturbingly and unconscionably Indigenized’: corrections watchdog

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:11:20 GMT

The federal prison watchdog says there are still too many Indigenous people behind bars in Canada.In fact, correctional investigator Ivan Zinger says the problem has gotten significantly worse since he originally flagged it a decade ago.Zinger’s latest annual report says 32 per cent of all federal inmates in Canada — and 50 per cent of the women — are Indigenous, compared to 25 per cent in 2013.The report describes the country’s penitentiary system as “disturbingly and unconscionably Indigenized,” with many lingering hallmarks of colonialism.That, Zinger says, contributes to the ongoing marginalization, criminalization and over-imprisonment of Indigenous Peoples in Canada.The new report urges the transfer of federally run healing lodges to local authorities, calls for a national Indigenous “decarceration” strategy and better supports for Indigenous elders who work in corrections.This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 2, 2023.Th...

UN plans to cut number of refugees receiving cash aid in Lebanon by a third, citing funding cuts

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:11:20 GMT

BEIRUT (AP) — Faced with an increasing funding crunch, the United Nations will cut the number of refugee families receiving cash assistance in Lebanon by nearly a third next year, a spokesperson for the U.N. refugee agency said Thursday.Due to “significant funding reductions,” UNHCR and the World Food Program will give monthly cash aid to 88,000 fewer families in 2024 than in 2023, UNHCR spokeswoman Lisa Abou Khaled said.About 190,000 families will continue receiving the assistance, which is capped at a monthly maximum of $125 per household, she said. In the past, some families received extra assistance in the winter months for heating fuel expenses, but this year that program will also be halted, Abou Khaled said. That aid “was critical for vulnerable families to survive the winter season,” she said.Lebanon, which has been in the throes of a severe financial crisis since 2019, hosts some 790,000 registered Syrian refugees and potentially hundreds of thousands more who are unregiste...

Job fair held for refugees at Misericordia Home

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:11:20 GMT

CHICAGO — Refugees who are looking for employment are checking out a job fair Thursday at Misericordia Home.Nearly 500 refugees from Venezuela, Afghanistan, Pakistan and Ukraine have registered and showed up for the fair that puts them face to face with potential opportunities.With the help of interpreters, refugees will meet with representatives in healthcare, manufacturing, hospitality, logistics and many more.More than 400 vacancies are available. These companies are committed to hiring them and providing needed support to succeed in the workplace.This event is not just about finding them a job, but also assisting them to get their degrees accredited, financial advising, providing information on government benefits and language classes. Cedar Fair and Six Flags will merge to create a playtime powerhouse in North America One of the organizers is a refugee from Afghanistan who understands the struggle of settling in a new country and the importance of these resources.The job fair...

Students evacuated after partial ceiling collapse at Lockport Township HS

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:11:20 GMT

LOCKPORT, Ill. -- Students were evacuated after a plaster ceiling collapsed at Lockport High School overnight, according to a statement released by the school. Quantum capital of the world: Emerging field that could solve ‘unsolvable’ problems The collapse happened at the school's central campus on the third floor. No students or staff members were injured. In a statement, the school said they are working with fire officials and the city Building Inspector to assess causes. The school is working with the Regional Office of Education to determine when the school can be reoccupied. There was no additional information provided.

2 wanted for allegedly pickpocketing CTA Blue Line rider, police say

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:11:20 GMT

CHICAGO — Police are seeking the whereabouts of two men suspected of stealing a rider's wallet on the CTA Blue Line platform. According to police, the Oct. 26 incident occurred around 12:45 p.m. in the first block of N. Dearborn St. The victim told police that someone fell into him and later realized he had been pickpocketed. Mass Transit Detectives are seeking the public’s assistance in identifying the above suspects responsible for a theft that occurred in the 0-100 block of N. Dearborn St. (Photo: CPD) Read more: Latest Chicago news headlines Anyone with information is asked to call (312) 745-4706.

Durbin calls for Israel-Hamas cease-fire tied to hostage release

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:11:20 GMT

Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), the second-highest ranking Democrat in the Senate, backed a cease-fire in the Israel-Hamas war Thursday but stipulated that it must start with the release of all hostages. Asked by CNN's Poppy Harlow whether it's time for a cease-fire, Durbin said: “I think it is." “At least in the context of both sides agreeing. For example, the release of those kidnapped should be part of this — immediate release. That should be the beginning of it,” Durbin said. “An effort should be made to engage in conversation between the Israelis and Palestinians.”Durbin’s use of the term “cease-fire” is notable in its departure from language used by both President Biden and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.).Biden on Wednesday suggested a "pause" in fighting was needed to "get the prisoners out," in response to a heckler who asked him to call for a cease-fire. Asked about his use of the term cease-fire and the fact that the president has purposefully not used t...