Good evening, let’s start with today’s top stories:
Teck Resources Ltd.’s split vote hangs in the balance, with the outcome too close to call, its biggest shareholder missing in action, and back-office problems causing frustration behind the scenes, a source familiar with the vote said.
Shareholders at Vancouver-based Teck will meet on Wednesday for the company’s proposal to split itself into Teck Metals and Elk Valley Resources, which would hold its metallurgical coal assets.
With only hours to go before the deadline, China Investment Corp.’s vote has not yet come in, and Teck’s advisers are baffled as to the reason why, the source said. Glencore PLC, which has a hostile takeover on the table, is hoping that Teck’s shareholders will vote against the split.
Also read:
- Analysis: How China could determine the outcome of Teck’s crucial vote Wednesday to split itself into two companies
- Key things to know as crucial Teck Resources split vote nears
- Why boardroom battles are accelerating across Canada
Public Service Alliance of Canada members who are employees at the Canadian Grain Commission picket outside the Viterra Cascadia Terminal, in Vancouver, on Monday, April 24, 2023.DARRYL DYCK/The Canadian Press
PSAC threatens to escalate strike action to ports across the country
Ottawa has reached out to ports and airports across the country as unions added new picket lines Monday following warnings over the weekend that they would expand picketing to include key economic hubs. As of Monday afternoon, there were no signs that the two sides are near a deal as the strike affecting over 155,000 federal public servants stretched into a sixth day.
PSAC workers in ports are also on strike and the union had warned the government before the strike commenced that port workers walking off the job could cause supply chain disruptions.
- Opinion: Public-sector strike may have lingering economic implications
Thousands of Canadians remain stranded in Sudan
On Sunday morning a handful of Canadian embassy staff were evacuated from battle-ravaged Khartoum in a dramatic airlift of international diplomats by helicopter, airplane and ship. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Canadian military officers are “planning for various contingencies with partners,” but gave no further details.
More than 1,590 Canadians remain trapped in Sudan. The city’s international airport has been at the epicentre of fighting since the outbreak of battles on April 15, which have killed hundreds of people and injured thousands.
But as foreign governments airlift their diplomats and citizens to safety, Sudanese desperately sought ways to escape the chaos, fearing that the country’s two rival generals will escalate their all-out battle for power once evacuations are completed.
Foreign interference and Canadian security
In guidelines recently sent to faculty and researchers at the University of Waterloo, the university is advising that they are not required to talk to CSIS agents or give them access to faculty equipment if approached by the spy agency for information on joint research projects with scientists from foreign countries such as China.
The memo also advises them: “You do not have a legal obligation to talk to a CSIS agent.” The Canadian Security Intelligence Service has taken on a greater role in scrutinizing scientific and high-tech projects that receive federal money after The Globe and Mail uncovered extensive collaboration between Canadian universities and Chinese military scientists.
- Also: Auditor-General’s office says it cannot investigate Trudeau Foundation donation from Chinese benefactors
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ALSO ON OUR RADAR
Courts: Dawn Walker, First Nations woman accused of fleeing with child, to argue she was trying to escape alleged abuse
Media: First, Tucker Carlson leaves Fox News a week after Fox settles Dominion lawsuit. Then Don Lemon, longtime CNN host, was reported out at cable news network as well.
Technology: Canadian companies cover new ground with Earth-observation technology for commercially valuable insights.
Haiti-Canada relations: A former Haitian prime minister says Canada is sending mixed signals by imposing sanctions on some of his country’s elites while avoiding direct criticism of the Caribbean nation’s government.
Report on Business Magazine: What leaders can learn from Oscar winner Sarah Polley
Artificial intelligence: The future is here, the ghostwriters are on the storm, and fake Drake is all too real in a song that was posted called Heart on My Sleeve. That is not the end of it, though. it appears robot music is here to stay.
China: Beijing has corrected statements by its ambassador to France by stating that China does indeed recognize the sovereignty of former Soviet states.
Listen to The Decibel: Why fewer people have confidence in childhood vaccines? The Globe’s health reporter, Carly Weeks explains to us how this happened
MARKET WATCH
TSX lower as technology shares lose ground
Canadian stocks edged lower on Monday as losses for the technology and financial sectors offset gains for resource shares, but the index was holding near a two-month high. Wall Street was also subdued as investors awaited earnings this week from some major technology companies.
The Toronto Stock Exchange’s S&P/TSX composite index ended down 16.41 points at 20,676.74, after posting on Friday its highest closing level since Feb. 15. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 66.44 points to 33,875.4 while the S&P 500 gained 3.52 points at 4,137.04. The Nasdaq Composite dropped 35.25 points to 12,037.20.
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TALKING POINTS
Would forcing drug users into treatment help ease the toxic drug crisis?
“It must be treated judiciously – and not used as a tool to score political points with a frustrated public.” -André Picard
The world is running out of time to negotiate a global pandemic treaty
“With just one year left to negotiate the agreement, it’s time for countries to say yes to working together with the greater aim of capacity-building for developing countries, and collective financing for pandemic prevention, preparedness and response.” -Roojin Habibi and Dr. Clare Wenham
Banning China from owning U.S. farmland will achieve nothing
“U.S. lawmakers seem more concerned with grandstanding and fuelling geopolitical tensions than they are with helping American food producers and consumers.” -Nancy Qian
LIVING BETTER
Getting your taxes done: The complete guide to saving money in 2023
Maybe you’re new to investing, to Canada, or to retirement, these tips from tax experts can help you save big on the taxes you file in 2023. All the tax information you need is finally here.
Whether you need tips for filing your taxes at the last minute, tricks for filing as a self-employed and gig workers, or ideas for families going through life transitions. Maybe you’re one of the types of people who should consider hiring an accountant, but what should you consider when filing taxes yourself versus getting the help of a professional anyway? We have it all.
TODAY’S LONG READ
Ellie Tah-Mahs Kinley of the Lummi Nation holds a blank card – digitally superimposed with an archival photo from 1970 – in order to show Lolita at the site on the Salish Sea coast where the Lummi hope to release her.Illustration by Kayla MacInnes and Wallie V. Funk
Lolita the orca’s next chapter
The gentle southern resident killer whale – the last one still in captivity – has seen staff and audiences at the Miami Seaquarium come and go.
Until recently, we knew virtually nothing about the inner lives of orcas: They dream. They teach. They grieve. Like us, they feel empathy and love. And while it may be easy to capture a whale, scientists are learning that returning one to the ocean is not – especially a creature as old and weak as Lolita.
After 53 years in captivity and a sea change in how humans treat her species, this killer whale could soon return to her native Salish Sea.
Evening Update is written by Sierra Bein. 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.