National Business

MONTREAL — The Quebec Professional Association of Real Estate Brokers says home sales in Montreal last month fell 39 per cent from a year earlier to a level not seen in December since 2014.

OTTAWA — Canada's merchandise trade balance slipped into a small deficit in November as energy exports fell amid lower prices, Statistics Canada said Thursday.

Consumer insolvencies were up 16.3 per cent in November 2022 compared with the same month the year prior, and business insolvencies were up 58.3 per cent. Meanwhile, consumer insolvencies for the 12-month period ended Nov. 30, 2022 were up 9.

BERLIN (AP) — Germany's network regulator said Thursday that a gas shortage is “increasingly unlikely” this winter, but cautioned that it remains important to use the fuel sparingly.

TORONTO — The Greater Toronto Area capped off a tumultuous year with its ninth straight month of declining home prices and almost half the sales seen a year ago.

Kelly Klassen was driving to central Alberta with her family to visit her brother for the holidays when the emails started filling her inbox. The travel agent from Rosthern, Sask.

CALGARY — Precision Drilling Corp. says it has beat its debt reduction goal for 2022. The company says it reduced its total debt by C$106 million in 2022, exceeding its C$75-million debt reduction goal. As of Dec.

TORONTO — CIBC has agreed to pay a total of $153 million to settle a class-action lawsuit filed more than a decade ago over the bank's overtime policies, lawyers for the plaintiffs say.

OTTAWA — Bond portfolios took a beating in 2022 as interest rates climbed, but experts say investors shouldn't neglect bonds this year as the Bank of Canada nears the end of its rate hike cycle.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Fewer Americans applied for jobless benefits last week, reflecting a still-robust job market despite the Federal Reserve's efforts to cool the economy and bring down decades-high inflation.