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CA-BUSINESS Summary

28/11/09

Black Friday sales up 0.5 percent: ShopperTrak

CHICAGO (Reuters) - Black Friday sales rose just 0.5 percent to $10.66 billion after rising 3 percent in 2008, ShopperTrak said on Saturday, a rise that may disappoint investors who had expected retailers to see a bigger boost this year. ShopperTrak, which measures customer traffic, said shopper traffic was heavy throughout the country on Friday, the kickoff of the holiday shopping season after U.S. Thanksgiving Day.

Abu Dhabi to aid Dubai on "case by case" basis

ABU DHABI (Reuters) - Abu Dhabi, wealthy capital of the United Arab Emirates, will "pick and choose" how to assist debt-laden neighbor Dubai, a senior official said on Saturday, after fears of a Dubai default sent global markets reeling. "We will look at Dubai's commitments and approach them on a case-by-case basis. It does not mean that Abu Dhabi will underwrite all of their debts," the official in the government of the emirate of Abu Dhabi told Reuters by phone.

TSX makes slim gain as Dubai fears recede

TORONTO (Reuters) - Toronto's main stock index ended up 0.2 percent in a see-saw session on Friday as gains in financial stocks overcame investor jitters over a possible debt default by a state-owned Dubai conglomerate. Royal Bank of Canada was the biggest heavyweight gainer of the session, up 1.5 percent at C$56.70. Toronto-Dominion Bank was up 0.5 percent at C$66.19, and Bank of Nova Scotia rose 0.6 percent to C$48.18.

EnCana shareholders approve company split

CALGARY, Alberta (Reuters) - EnCana Corp's investors on Wednesday approved a plan to split Canada's No. 2 independent petroleum producer into independent oil and natural gas businesses, completing a move first mulled more than a year ago but delayed by the financial crisis. Shareholders voted 99 percent in favor of the transaction, through which EnCana will spin off its oil sands operations into a new company called Cenovus Energy Inc and retain its natural gas production business, the largest in Canada.

Dodge says rates can stay low through 2015

OTTAWA (Reuters) - The Bank of Canada could keep its benchmark interest rate accommodative through 2015 to offset fiscal restraint by the government, which must hike taxes to balance its budget, former central bank chief David Dodge said on Friday. In point-form notes for a speech he was delivering at a business forum in Lake Louise, Alberta, Dodge backed the plan by his successor, Governor Mark Carney, to hold interest rates at near zero until mid-2010 but said the bank could back away from "unconventional initiatives".

Flaherty says G7 monitoring Dubai fallout

TORONTO (Reuters) - The Group of Seven countries has discussed the potential fallout on the global financial system from Dubai's delayed debt payments, Canadian Finance Minister Jim Flaherty said on Friday. Flaherty, speaking to reporters, said the Canadian banking regulator sees little or no impact in Canada from Dubai's request for a standstill on payments of tens of billions of dollars of debt owed by conglomerate Dubai World, a move that has sparked debt default fears that have rattled global markets.

Rail strike would hurt Canada farmers, exporters

WINNIPEG, Manitoba (Reuters) - A strike at Canada's biggest railway would interrupt a busy period for transporting grain across one of the world's top exporting countries, and could ring up costs to farmers and grain exporters. Negotiators from Canadian National Railway , the country biggest railway, and the union representing 1,700 locomotive engineers, met on Friday in hopes of averting a strike scheduled to begin on Saturday.

Vale Voisey's talks hinge on Sudbury, union says

TORONTO (Reuters) - Striking workers at Vale's Voisey's Bay nickel mine in eastern Canada will not resume bargaining with the company unless Vale also agrees to sit down with striking workers at its Sudbury, Ontario nickel operations, the union said on Friday. "We went out together, we're going back together. Vale had better understand that," said Wayne Fraser, a regional director for the United Steelworkers Union, which represents the workers at both operations.

Japan PM, BOJ governor to meet next week: sources

TOKYO (Reuters) - Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama and Bank of Japan Governor Masaaki Shirakawa will meet next week, two sources with direct knowledge of the matter said, as a surging yen adds to debate over central bank policy. While the sources did not disclose the topic of discussion, Hatoyama and Shirakawa are expected to exchange views on deflation and the impact of a strengthening yen amid government pressure for the central bank to do more to stop prices falling and rekindle demand.

Black Friday sales barely up, online surges

CHICAGO (Reuters) - In a worrisome sign for retailers, data released on Saturday showed that sales rose a scant 0.5 percent on the traditional kickoff to the holiday shopping season despite early signs of a strong showing. A focus on bargains pulled shoppers into stores and onto websites over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend, but many said they would stick to their budgets and avoid purchases if they could not find a good deal.

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