Good evening, this newsletter will pause tomorrow for the statutory holiday, and resume on Monday. Now let’s start with today’s top stories:
The latest COVID-19 developments: Ontario announces shutdown; modelling warns of nearly 6,000 new cases a day by month’s end
As widely expected, Ontario Premier Doug Ford announced today what he calls a provincewide “emergency brake” to curb the spread of more deadly variants of COVID-19. The new four-week restrictions, which take effect Saturday, are similar to those in the current “grey” or “lockdown” level and include:
- No indoor or outdoor dining at restaurants – takeout or delivery service only.
- Hair salons, which had been due to open in April in the grey zone, will now remain shut, as will gyms and sports facilities.
- Essential businesses such as grocery stores and pharmacies will operate at 50-per-cent capacity, while other retailers, including big-box stores, will be at 25 per cent.
- Schools will stay open, with the April 12 break week expected to proceed as planned.
Earlier in the day, the province’s COVID-19 Science Advisory Table released new modelling that warns the new more contagious variants could drive new cases close to the 6,000-a-day mark by the end of April. Ontario reported 2,557 new cases today.
Ford’s announcement comes a day after Quebec imposed its strictest lockdown in nearly a year on two regions – Quebec City and Gatineau – as COVID-19 variants suddenly spin out of control. The province today reported 1,271 new cases – its highest daily number since late January. Earlier in the week, British Columbia imposed its strictest rules since the pandemic began.
Opinion:
- Health and long-term care workers who decline vaccination should be put on unpaid leave - Robyn Urback
- The collapse of Merkel’s pandemic-control machine is a warning to us all - Doug Saunders
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Canada’s IPO craze hit by growth stock selloff, Canadarm maker MDA slashes deal size by 20%
Canada’s booming market for initial public offerings is facing a substantial cooling, with space equipment company MDA the latest casualty of the correction.
In March, MDA, maker of the iconic Canadarm, laid out plans to raise $500-million and price its shares between $16 and $20 apiece. Late yesterday, the company slashed the deal size to $400-million and priced at $14 a share, according to three people familiar with the offering.
The pricing change follows similar revisions by recent IPO candidates Boat Rocker Media and ABC Technologies Holdings.
ALSO ON OUR RADAR
Day 4 of Chauvin trial: George Floyd’s girlfriend tearfully told a jury today the story of how they met and how they both struggled mightily with an addiction to opioids. Prosecutors in the murder trial of former police officer Derek Chauvin put Courteney Ross on the stand as part of an effort to portray Floyd as more than a crime statistic.
Ford production cuts to hit Oakville plant: Ford Motor Co. has announced the latest North American production cuts at seven assembly plants due to the global chip shortage, including a three-week stop at its Oakville, Ont., facility starting April 12.
Cause determined in Woods crash: The Los Angeles County sheriff said detectives have determined what caused Tiger Woods to crash his SUV in Southern California in February, but declined to release details, citing unspecified privacy concerns for the golf star.
Andreescu advances in Miami: Canadian tennis star Bianca Andreescu earned a spot in the Miami Open semi-finals by beating Spain’s Sara Sorribes Tormo yesterday, and will take on Maria Sakkari of Greece tonight. Check back at GlobeSports.com later tonight for scores and highlights.
Paris-Roubaix race postponed: The Paris-Roubaix cycling race, one of five single-day classics known as the Monuments, has been postponed until October because of the coronavirus pandemic. It had been scheduled for April 11, but a surge in of new infections in France has let to tighter restrictions.
MARKET WATCH
North American stocks closed higher and the S&P 500 crossed the 4,000 mark for the first time, lifted by gains in technology shares as well as optimism about a pickup in economic activity. The resource sector led a jump in Canada’s main stock index.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 171.47 points or 0.52 per cent to 33,153.02, the S&P 500 gained 43.20 points or 1.09 per cent to 4,016.09 and the Nasdaq Composite added 223.55 points or 1.69 per cent to end at 13,470.42.
TSX/S&P composite index rose 289.65 points or 1.55 per cent to 18,990.32.
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TALKING POINTS
Joe Biden’s new climate plans should jolt Ottawa
After being the default continental climate leader while Donald Trump held office, Ottawa now needs to worry about keeping pace with Washington’s green agenda – both as a matter of environmental responsibility, and to prevent domestic industries from suffering competitively. - Adam Radwanski
Another victim of COVID-19: torture shoes
“On the one hand, the Satan shoe raises interesting questions about art, commerce and the growing blob on the Venn diagram where they intersect. ... But on the other hand – and here’s where we’re headed – this is what it takes to get people talking about wearing shoes again. It takes Satan. - Cathal Kelly
LIVING BETTER
Since the pandemic hit, hand sanitizer, disinfectants and stay-at-home rules have become the order of the day. While such measures are critical in the fight against COVID-19, experts worry they could have a harmful effect on our microbiomes, with lasting consequences for our health. To mitigate the effects, Jason Tetro, author of The Germ Code and The Germ Files, advises getting into nature, eating fresh fruits and vegetables and fermented foods, opening windows and practising “targeted hygiene” instead of indiscriminately disinfecting everything.
TODAY’S LONG READ
What a “hot” housing market looks like in Alberta
Courtney Montgomery in front of a house she was viewing when her realtor informed her it had been sold in Calgary on March 29, 2021. The house, in the northwest community of Bowness, was on the market for less than 24 hours before it sold.Sarah B Groot/The Globe and Mail
On March 24, Courtney Montgomery and her realtor were viewing a for-sale unit in a Calgary duplex. Barely 10 minutes into the viewing they were suddenly interrupted by a knock on the door. Irritated by the disruption, Ms. Montgomery’s realtor opened the door to find another realtor who’d been waiting outside to show the same unit to their clients. “ ‘I don’t know if you’ve got the memo. But I just got an e-mail from the listing realtor,’ ” Ms. Montgomery recalls the other realtor saying. “[The seller] had three offers and they accepted one.” The unit had been listed that same morning. “It was kind of heartbreaking,” she says.
Currently, the challenge for Albertans isn’t finding a home within an affordable price-point, as it is in Ontario and B.C. The challenge for buyers in Calgary and Edmonton is having the capacity to move quickly.
According to Matthew Boukall, vice-president of product management and data solutions at Altus Group, along with immigrants, millennials entering the market in Alberta are driving the growing demand. “In Alberta we’ve got like six years of pent-up demand being released effectively during a great time to buy a house because interest rates are low and supply was relatively good,” he said. Read Ximena Gonzalez’s full story here.
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