Tausi Insider

NFI Group Inc. NFI-T reported a loss of US$42.6-million in its latest quarter compared with a loss of US$15.4-million in the same quarter last year as its revenue edged higher. NFI chief executive Paul Soubry says the results reflect the ongoing impacts of unreliable supplier performance, associated production inefficiencies and heightened inflation on input costs. The bus maker, which keeps its books in U.S. dollars, says the loss amounted to 56 cents per share for the company’s third quarter compared with a loss of 22 cents per share a year earlier. Revenue for the quarter totalled US$514.0-million, up from US$492.0 in its third quarter of 2021. On an adjusted basis, NFI says it lost 63 cents per share in its latest quarter compared with an adjusted loss of 16 cents per share in the same quarter last year. The company says it is in talks with Export Development Canada, the Manitoba government and other banking syndicate members regarding credit facility covenant relief and potentia...

Shaw and Rogers have been trying to make the case throughout the hearing that the proposed sale of Freedom to Videotron would benefit consumers. Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press A wireless communications specialist says Freedom Mobile under Videotron Ltd. would be a strong competitor in the telecom market as the hearing on Rogers Communications Inc.’s RCI-B-T $26-billion proposed takeover of Shaw Communications Inc. SJR-B-T continued. William Webb, chief technology officer at Access Partnership and a Shaw witness, told the Competition Tribunal Monday that Freedom under Quebecor Inc.-owned Videotron would not lack access to the assets or services it would need to be as effective a wireless competitor as Freedom under Shaw. Webb also said that Freedom’s costs to develop a 5G network under Videotron’s ownership would be significantly reduced. Freedom does not offer 5G connectivity and does not own 3500 MHz. 3500 MHz is spectrum that has become key for 5G innovation. Webb said the comb...

Children's backpacks and shoes at a CEFA (Core Education and Fine Arts) Early Learning daycare franchise, in Langley, B.C., on May 29, 2018. DARRYL DYCK/The Canadian Press At a time of rising interest rates and rampant inflation, the move toward $10-a-day child care is a rare bit of financial good news for new and aspiring Canadian parents. But, as Ottawa has rolled out the plan, it’s become clear that many families will likely end up paying far more than 10 bucks per day. As it negotiated separate deals with the provinces and territories, the federal government always intended $10 to be the average – not the maximum. We should all work to make $10 per day into more than just a guideline. Childcare is a huge expense for young families each month, often amounting to a second rent- or mortgage-sized payment. Young people must pay for this cost on top of housing prices that are frighteningly higher than when baby boomers started their families. Today’s home prices more often require...

A sold sign is seen outside a home in Ottawa in this file photo. Justin Tang/The Canadian Press Canada’s national real estate association is forecasting another year of housing market declines, after home prices sank for the 10th straight month in December and as households continue to struggle with higher borrowing costs. The home price index fell to $730,600 last month, a 1.6-per-cent drop from November and 13 per cent lower than the February peak. That marks the largest downward swing since the financial crisis of 2008 and 2009, when the index fell 9 per cent. It also tops the 7-per-cent slide in 2018, when the federal government toughened up mortgage qualifications. (The index excludes sales of extremely expensive homes and is the industry’s preferred measure of home prices.) Home resales increased from November to December but were still 39 per cent below the volume of activity of December, 2021, when the pandemic’s real estate boom was in full swing. The Canadian Real Estate As...

A sold sign is seen outside a home in Ottawa in this file photo. Justin Tang/The Canadian Press Canada’s national real estate association is forecasting another year of housing market declines, after home prices sank for the 10th straight month in December and as households continue to struggle with higher borrowing costs. The home price index fell to $730,600 last month, a 1.6-per-cent drop from November and 13 per cent lower than the February peak. That marks the largest downward swing since the financial crisis of 2008 and 2009, when the index fell 9 per cent. It also tops the 7-per-cent slide in 2018, when the federal government toughened up mortgage qualifications. (The index excludes sales of extremely expensive homes and is the industry’s preferred measure of home prices.) Home resales increased from November to December but were still 39 per cent below the volume of activity of December, 2021, when the pandemic’s real estate boom was in full swing. The Canadian Real Estate As...

Anthony Lacavera, Globalive’s founder and chairman, on Dec. 13, 2021. Christopher Katsarov/Tausi Insider Globalive Inc. is attempting to re-enter Canada’s wireless industry with a bid to acquire airwaves from now-defunct Manitoba carrier Xplore Mobile Inc. Anthony Lacavera, Globalive’s founder and chairman, said the bid, if successful, would allow his company to start offering wireless services in Manitoba. His aim is to acquire additional spectrum – airwaves used to transmit wireless signals – by participating in coming auctions to create a national, wireless-only carrier. “We will bring wireless prices across Canada down to globally competitive levels for all Canadians,” Mr. Lacavera said in a statement. He declined to disclose the price or other details of his offer to Xplore Mobile, which was shuttered in August, 2022. Globalive’s bid is contingent on approval by both Xplore Mobile and Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada, the federal department tasked with overse...