An Air Canada jet takes off from Trudeau Airport in Montreal, Thursday, June 30, 2022. Air Canada is cutting more than 15 per cent of its scheduled flights in July and August as airports face lengthy delays and cancellations amid an overwhelming travel resurgence.Graham Hughes/The Canadian Press
Getting caught up on a week that got away? Here’s your weekly digest of The Globe’s most essential business and investing stories, with insights and analysis from the pros, stock tips, portfolio strategies and more.
Air Canada continues to experience turbulence with second-quarter loss
Despite the strong demand in ticket sales, Air Canada lost $386-million in the second quarter, highlighting the continued toll the pandemic and travel shutdowns is having on the airline industry. As Eric Atkins reports, the company lost $1.60 a share. For the three months ended June 30, operating revenue rose almost five times to $3.98-billion as Air Canada flew more than 9.1 million people. However, the rush to return to flying has overwhelmed airports, airlines and government agencies, causing long lineups and delayed or cancelled flights at several airports. Air Canada reduced its schedule this summer as it faces staffing shortages.
Psst… Your boss is struggling – but terrified to tell anyone
If your boss is burned out, they’re likely not telling anyone about it, writes Tim Kiladze. A recent survey of 1,200 managers at 11 private and public-sector organizations found that workplace stigma still deters many from revealing their mental-health woes. Over the course of the pandemic, executives and senior managers have known the importance of supporting employees who were struggling. Yet in the upper echelons of organizations, something is breaking down, and the pace of work is only expected to grow.
Inflation is coming for your pandemic savings
The stockpile of savings many Canadians built up during the early months of the pandemic is now being eroded by inflation. Average household net savings fell 44 per cent to $1,900 in the first quarter from the year before, according to Statistics Canada, “as inflationary pressures weighed on consumption.” But not all households are being hit equally. Jason Kirby breaks down the savings gap in this week’s Decoder.
Why not practice delayed gratification with OAS pension payments?
Starting last week, the Canadian government permanently increased Old Age Security payments by 10 per cent for seniors 75 and older – the first permanent increase to the OAS pension since 1973. However, retirees should consider delaying uptake of their OAS benefits in order to maximize the 10 per cent boost. As Bonnie-Jeanne MacDonald and Doug Chandler explain, OAS can be postponed for up to five years in return for a monthly payment increase of 0.6 per cent for each month the pension is deferred. Delaying public pensions, if you can swing it, is a great financial strategy for improving long-term retirement income security.
How Canopy’s cannabis dreams went up in smoke
Canopy Growth Corp., once Canada’s top licensed producer of cannabis by market share, has seen its share price collapse from $67.74 on Sept. 7, 2018 to $3.50 as of Friday’s market close. The recent spiral is particularly bruising for Constellation Brands Inc., the U.S. alcohol giant that invested a total of $5.2-billion in Canopy back when it seemed like recreational weed could be the next big thing. So what happened? Tim Kiladze and Irene Galea look into the causes of Canopy’s demise.
Rising interest rates continue to rock real estate markets
Sales and home prices in Toronto and Vancouver – the country’s two most expensive markets – tumbled further in July, as mortgages become further out of reach for many and buyers wait to see how low prices can go. In the Toronto region, home resales dropped 47 per cent compared with the same month last year, and in the Vancouver area, resales declined 43 per cent year over year and were 23 per cent lower than June. The real estate slowdown driven by soaring interest rates is causing preconstruction condo sales to plunge, as well. Toronto developers are expected to delay the launch of 10,000 condo units this year as demand continues to soften.
ICYMI: Corporate Canada is still failing to make substantial progress on diversity
Two years after signing BlackNorth Initiative – a 2020 pledge aimed at tackling systemic racism – the majority of companies haven’t made progress toward the diversity goals they committed to meet over five years. On three prominent metrics – the number of Black employees, Black executives and Black directors – only about 10 per cent of the 481 companies that signed on have reported an improvement over the past two years. In fact, 70 per cent of companies that signed the pledge didn’t respond to The Globe’s survey or said they didn’t track the data. Thus, improvements in the number of Black and other racialized employees since 2020 were only apparent among the minority of companies.
Now that you’re all caught up, prepare for the week ahead with the Globe’s investing calendar.
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Michelle da Silva