Good evening, let’s start with today’s top stories:
The Canadian labour market rebounded last month by adding around 90,000 jobs in April, after a slight decline in March, Statistics Canada said today. This marks the strongest month of job creation since January last year, as analysts were expecting a gain of 20,000 jobs. However, the unemployment rate held steady at 6.1 per cent as the country’s population is grows at a feverish pace.
Today marked the final Labour Force Survey before the Bank of Canada’s next rate decision on June 5.
- Markets and economists react: BoC June rate cut bets slashed after unexpectedly strong jobs data
- Opinion: Canada has become the Toronto Maple Leafs
- Opinion: The economy we have taken for granted is not coming back
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UN General Assembly backs Palestinian bid for membership
Palestinian Ambassador to the United Nations Riyad Mansour is greeted by delegates during the United Nations General Assembly after voting on a draft resolution that would recognize the Palestinians as qualified to become a full UN member.Eduardo Munoz/Reuters
The United Nations General Assembly today overwhelmingly backed a Palestinian bid for full membership by recognizing it as qualified to join. The resolution “determines that the State of Palestine … should therefore be admitted to membership” and it “recommends that the Security Council reconsider the matter favourably.” The resolution was adopted with 143 votes in favour and nine against, including the United States and Israel.
Canada abstained from the vote, which does not give Palestinians full UN membership, but simply recognizes them as qualified to join.
- Globe in the Middle East: For many Israelis and Palestinians, Benjamin Netanyahu and Mahmoud Abbas are an obstacle to peace
- Elsewhere: South Africa asks World Court to order Israel’s withdrawal from Rafah
- Opinion: Hamas is in trouble with Palestinians in Gaza
The WNBA is coming to Toronto, adding a 14th franchise to the growing league
Toronto has been awarded a WNBA franchise, an industry source confirmed to The Globe and Mail today. CBC Sports was the first to announce the news. The Toronto WNBA team will enter the league in 2026 and the team is expected to play at Coca-Cola Coliseum, at Exhibition Place. It will be owned by Kilmer Sports Inc., which is led by Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment minority owner Larry Tanenbaum.
- Meanwhile: PWHL lets a bold breed of female hockey commentators call the shots
- Also: Two-thirds of Canadians are fans of women’s sports, survey says
- Opinion: The PWHL needs to make sure its success doesn’t kill what makes it special
ALSO ON OUR RADAR
Drake: Toronto police say an alleged intruder at Drake’s Bridle Path home was sent to hospital with serious injuries after an altercation with security guards. Earlier this week, one of the rapper’s security guards was injured in a shooting outside the gates of the mansion.
Rent: The average asking rent for a home in Canada last month increased by 9.3 per cent compared with a year ago, according to a report by Urbanation and Rentals.ca. The average asking rent for all home types was $2,188 last month.
Health: Canadian Blood Services has apologized to LGBTQ+ groups for a past policy that banned gay and bisexual men from donating blood. The ban was in place until 2022.
Careers: Job applicants who are non-binary and disclose gender-neutral ‘they/them’ pronouns on their résumé are less likely to receive interest from employers, according to a recent working paper.
Books: Got an iPad kid? Here are 12 books to get kids reading instead of staring at screens.
Mother’s Day: Sunday May 12 marks Mother’s Day, and we have 10 gift ideas for those still looking for the perfect present.
MARKET WATCH
U.S. stocks eked out modest gains today. All three indexes posted another weekly advance as investors parsed comments from Federal Reserve officials and looked ahead to crucial inflation data next week.
The Dow Jones industrial average was up 125.08 points at 39,512.84. The S&P 500 index was up 8.60 points at 5,222.68, while the Nasdaq composite was down 5.39 points at 16,340.87. The S&P/TSX composite index closed down 66.90 points at 22,308.93.
The Canadian dollar traded for 73.18 cents US.
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TALKING POINTS
The foreign-interference scandal shows that it’s time to clean up Canada’s party nomination races
“It does not take a confidential intelligence report to know that party nomination races are a mess. It has been common knowledge for decades.” - Andrew Coyne
If you want to bike recklessly, don’t do it with a toddler on the back. Drivers aren’t always vigilant
“I drove another fifty feet, parked and got out of my car and stood wondering if I was going to have the opportunity to see what oatmeal tastes like coming up.” - Andrew Clark
It’s distressing to hear accounts of domestic violence – but we must listen
“In Canada, a woman is killed by a partner or ex-partner every six days. Every night in Toronto, some 300 women and their children flee their homes to gender-based violence shelters.” - Denise Chong
LIVING BETTER
Not being loyal might be a consumer’s best move
The gamification of loyalty points can be overwhelming.Ryan Remiorz/The Canadian Press
Every retailer wants to take part in a loyalty program for the good of consumers, but there is no loyalty, personal finance expert Barry Choi writes. What retailers are really after is your data, and people who pay attention to loyalty program changes can find ways to save money. Find out more here.
TODAY’S LONG READ
The labour crunch
Carmi Magnaye is attended to by midwife Mahnaz Donyadideh-Torei, left, while giving birth to her third child at home in Toronto, Ontario, on February 10, 2022.
Faced with gaps in maternity care in Canada, midwives say they could be doing more to close them. They can visit people at home and facilitate both at-home and hospital births. But some of them say they aren’t being properly utilized and can’t work to their full potential because they aren’t always recognized or compensated in the same way as other health professionals. Read more here.
Evening Update is written by Maryam Shah. If you’d like to receive this newsletter by e-mail every weekday evening, go here to sign up. If you have any feedback, send us a note.