Evening Update: Escalation fears ease after NATO, Warsaw say missile that hit Poland was Ukrainian stray

Good evening, let’s start with today’s top stories:

Warsaw and NATO have said that the missile that hit a grain facility in Poland near the Ukrainian border yesterday was likely a stray fired by Ukraine’s air defences and not a Russian strike, easing global fears of a war escalation.

Nevertheless, NATO’s chief said that Moscow, not Kyiv, was still to blame for starting the war in the first place with its February invasion and launching scores of missiles on Tuesday that triggered Ukrainian defences.

“From the information that we and our allies have, it was an S-300 rocket made in the Soviet Union, an old rocket and there is no evidence that it was launched by the Russian side,” Polish President Andrzej Duda said. “It is highly probable that it was fired by Ukrainian anti-aircraft defence.”

Read more:

• G20 issues ‘strong and clear’ condemnation of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine
• Opinion: Polish missile crisis is sharp reminder of threat posed by Russia’s invasion
• The Editorial Board: Why the war in Ukraine is unlikely to end anytime soon

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Canada’s annual inflation rate steady at 6.9% in October as gas costs climb

Canada’s inflation rate held steady in October at elevated levels and gasoline costs rose sharply, snapping a three-month streak of slowing growth for consumer prices.

The consumer price index rose 6.9 per cent in October from a year earlier, matching the inflation rate in September, Statistics Canada said Wednesday. After hitting a near four-decade high of 8.1 per cent in June, the annual inflation rate has eased somewhat, largely because gasoline prices fell from record highs seen in the aftermath of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

That dynamic shifted again in October. Gas prices jumped 9.2 per cent, which Statscan attributed to a weaker Canadian dollar and announcements of oil production cuts overseas. The gas increase was offset by slowing price growth for various items, such as groceries.

Read more:

• Higher TFSA contribution limit and lower taxes are among the rare upsides of high inflation
• Canadian dollar pulls back from eight-week high as inflation steady

Chinese President Xi berates Trudeau on sidelines of G20 for leaking conversation

Chinese President Xi Jinping confronted Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on the sidelines of the G20 summit today, complaining that Trudeau’s office had published details of a conversation between them.

The Prime Minister was notably left off a busy diplomatic schedule for the Chinese leader in Bali, Indonesia – an apparent snub, as Xi engaged in bilateral meetings with U.S. President Joe Biden, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and French President Emmanuel Macron, among others.

Trudeau was able to grab a brief, unofficial aside with Xi on Tuesday afternoon, during which he raised concerns about alleged Chinese interference in Canadian elections and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, according to accounts Canadian officials provided to multiple media outlets. Beijing made no reference to their meeting, nor was it covered in state media.

CUPE’s Ontario education workers announce potential strike Monday after talks with province reach impasse

The union representing Ontario’s education support workers has threatened to go on strike starting on Monday as talks with the provincial government stalled once again.

The Canadian Union of Public Employees, which represents 55,000 education workers, issued its required five days’ strike notice on Wednesday. The union said it reached an agreement on wages but says the government refuses to invest in services for students and families.

The announcement of a potential strike would shutter many schools across the province, and comes just two days after the government repealed a controversial piece of legislation that imposed a contract on the workers and used the Charter’s notwithstanding clause to ban their right to strike. Education Minister Stephen Lecce characterized the strike notice as unfair to students and families and said the government made a “reasonable” offer to the union, which included wages hikes that amounted to an increase of 3.59 per cent a year over a four-year contract.

ALSO ON OUR RADAR

B.C. cancer patients face dangerously lengthy wait times: Growing wait times for cancer care in British Columbia are worsening outcomes for patients and leaving some to die before their first medical consultations, a situation doctors say is causing both themselves and those they treat to lose faith in the cancer system.

Former border chief says officers couldn’t stop convoy protesters entering Canada: The former head of the Canada Border Services Agency was surprised to learn last winter that officers did not have the authority to stop would-be protesters from entering the country as demonstrations against COVID-19 restrictions were gaining momentum across Canada, he testified Wednesday.

Loblaw, Metro sales and profits grow: The two Canadian grocers reported growth in sales and profits in their latest quarters, as the sector continues to face scrutiny over food inflation and its impact on people’s ability to afford basic necessities.

Elon Musk gives Twitter staff ultimatum: Musk sent a message to Twitter Inc. staff telling them they had until Thursday to decide whether they wanted to stay on at the company to work “long hours at high intensity” or take a severance package of three months pay.

We’ve launched a new weekly newsletter Great Reads – a curated collection of provocative, inspiring or delightful stories sent on Saturday mornings. Sign up here.

MARKET WATCH

Wall Street’s main indexes ended lower on Wednesday as a grim outlook from Target spurred fresh concerns about retailers heading into the crucial holiday season, while semiconductor shares slid after Micron’s supply cut. The TSX also ended lower, pressured by declines in the energy and materials sectors, as investors took in the latest Canadian inflation data.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 39.09 points, or 0.12 per cent, to 33,553.83, the S&P 500 lost 32.94 points, or 0.83 per cent, to 3,958.79 and the Nasdaq composite dropped 174.75 points, or 1.54 per cent, to 11,183.66.

The S&P/TSX composite index closed down 36.82 points or 0.18 per cent at 19,957.96.

In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was down 39.09 points at 33,553.83. The S&P 500 index was down 32.94 points at 3,958.79, while the Nasdaq composite was down 174.75 points at 11,183.66.

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TALKING POINTS

Trump wants the presidency back, but the midterms show America has already moved on

“Unsurprisingly, the former president’s announcement featured a torrent of lies, exaggerations and wild accusations. There is comfort, however, in the knowledge that Americans are getting wise to him, probably wiser than he knows.” – Lawrence Martin

Nuclear energy is key in solving our climate conundrum

“It is a safe and proven source of energy that currently displaces more than two billion tonnes of carbon-dioxide emissions globally, equivalent to taking 500 million cars (or half of the world’s passenger vehicles) off the road.” – Jatin Nathwani

LIVING BETTER

Renovating can help you get the home you otherwise can’t afford

Is doing renovation work a more affordable option than buying the perfect place? In this episode of The Stress Test podcast, we hear from homeowners embarking on this journey. Also, Rob Carrick speaks with an expert on the types of renos that add value to your home as well as money-saving tips for those considering heading down the reno route.

TODAY’S LONG READ

Artemis I launch reignites dreams of a human presence on the moon

Open this photo in gallery:

It’s just shy of 50 years since an astronaut last set foot on the moon, marking the end of the era that stands as the high water mark of human spaceflight.

Now, with the launch of Artemis I from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center on Wednesday, the U.S. Space Agency has taken a major step on a path to reprise that feat and eventually surpass it – by sending more astronauts to more daring locations on the lunar surface for longer periods of time.

Ultimately, the stated objective of the Artemis program is to lay the groundwork for human missions to Mars. The timeline for those lofty ambitions is far from set. More than ever it hinges on the performance of the crewless spacecraft that rumbled to life at 1:47 a.m. ET for a 26-day trip around the moon and back.

Evening Update is written by Prajakta Dhopade. 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.