TORONTO —
Several provinces have halted administration of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine to those under the age of 55 following new recommendations from Canada’s National Advisory Committee on Immunization (NACI).
On Monday, the NACI recommended pausing administration of the AstraZeneca vaccine to those under the age of 55, pending further investigation on reported cases of vaccine-induced prothrombotic immune thrombocytopenia (VIPIT), a rare blood clotting disorder, in Europe.
“We are taking this precautionary measure while Health Canada as the regulator completes its updated risk benefit analysis based on emerging data,” Dr. Howard Njoo, deputy chief public health officer at the Public Health Agency of Canada, saidMonday during a technical briefing on the matter.
“During this time of risk assessment, Canada has other vaccine options to address the ongoing risk of COVID-19 infection.”
Following the recommendation, several provinces announced they would follow the guidance, including Alberta, Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec, British Columbia and Newfoundland and Labrador.
Prince Edward Island indicated on Monday morning it will no longer give the AstraZeneca vaccine to anyone. It had been set aside for people between the ages of 18 and 29.
Health officials in Nova Scotia said the updated recommendation will not impact vaccine rollout as the AstraZeneca vaccine is currently only being offered to people between the ages of 60 and 64.
VIPIT is a condition that refers to blood clots — including blood clots in the brain — stemming from receipt of the AstraZeneca vaccine. Symptoms include serious headache, seizure, blurred vision and shortness of breath and tend to develop between four and 16 days after receiving the vaccine.
According to the NACI, cases have been identified primarily in women under the age of 55, though cases have been reported in men as well.
Based on available information, the NACI said the fatality rate of VIPIT is about 40 per cent, but this may decrease as doctors and those receiving the vaccine are more aware of the condition.
“The exact mechanism by which the AstraZeneca vaccine triggers that is still under investigation and no other risk factors have been consistently identified in patients who develop VIPIT,” Dr. Shelley Deeks, vice-chair of the NACI, said in the briefing.
Previously, it was believed that cases of VIPIT occur in about one per million administered dosesof the vaccine. However, a recent report from the Paul Ehrlich Institute in Germany indicated it could be one in 100,000 doses.
“NACI has determined that there is substantial uncertainty about the benefit of providing AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine to adults under 55 years of age, given the potential risks associated with VIPIT,” Deeks said.
The NACI also recommended the continued use of the AstraZeneca vaccine among people over the age of 55 with informed consent, due to the lower risk of developing of VIPIT in older populations and the increased risk of severe COVID-19 infections among these age groups.
Sweden and Finland have already suspended distribution of the vaccine to those under the age of 65, while in Spain it is only administered to those between the ages of 18 and 65. In Denmark, health officials have extended their suspension of the vaccine until at least April 18.
In a statement, AstraZeneca said it respects the NACI’s decision and that patient safety “remains the company’s highest priority.”
“Regulatory authorities in the U.K., European Union, the World Health Organization and Health Canada have concluded that the benefits of using our vaccine to protect people from this deadly virus significantly outweigh the risks across all adult age groups,” the company wrote in the statement.
“Tens of millions of people have now received our vaccine across the globe. The extensive body of data from two large clinical datasets and real-world evidence demonstrate its effectiveness, reaffirming the role the vaccine can play during this public health crisis.”
In a statement, Health Canada said there have been no reports of blood clots from the AstraZeneca vaccine in this country, but noted that cases have been reported in Europe and it is now requiring “additional terms and conditions on the authorizations of the AstraZeneca and Verity Pharmaceuticals/Serum Institute of India vaccines.”
“These will include a requirement that the manufacturers conduct a detailed assessment of the benefits and risks of the vaccine by age and sex in the Canadian context,” Health Canada said in the statement. “This information will support the ongoing evaluation of these rare blood clotting events, and allow Health Canada to determine if there are specific groups of people who may be at higher risk.”
Last week, Health Canada noted that the vaccine is not associated with an overall increased risk of blood clots and that the benefits of the vaccine outweigh its risks.
In Monday’s statement, Health Canada noted that this guidance still stands and it is working with international partners to evaluate the incoming data.
Canada is expecting to receive 1.5 million doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine on Tuesday from the United States, which has not yet authorized it for emergency use. The shipment will represent the first doses to come from the United States.
Another 500,000 doses that were delivered from the Serum Institute of India have already been distributed.
Last week, AstraZeneca reported its vaccine was 76 per cent effective in preventing symptoms and 100 per cent effective against serious infections that result in hospitalization.
With files from CTVNews.ca producer and writer Ryan Flanagan
TOKYO (AP) — Japanese technology group SoftBank swung back to profitability in the July-September quarter, boosted by positive results in its Vision Fund investments.
Tokyo-based SoftBank Group Corp. reported Tuesday a fiscal second quarter profit of nearly 1.18 trillion yen ($7.7 billion), compared with a 931 billion yen loss in the year-earlier period.
Quarterly sales edged up about 6% to nearly 1.77 trillion yen ($11.5 billion).
SoftBank credited income from royalties and licensing related to its holdings in Arm, a computer chip-designing company, whose business spans smartphones, data centers, networking equipment, automotive, consumer electronic devices, and AI applications.
The results were also helped by the absence of losses related to SoftBank’s investment in office-space sharing venture WeWork, which hit the previous fiscal year.
WeWork, which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in 2023, emerged from Chapter 11 in June.
SoftBank has benefitted in recent months from rising share prices in some investment, such as U.S.-based e-commerce company Coupang, Chinese mobility provider DiDi Global and Bytedance, the Chinese developer of TikTok.
SoftBank’s financial results tend to swing wildly, partly because of its sprawling investment portfolio that includes search engine Yahoo, Chinese retailer Alibaba, and artificial intelligence company Nvidia.
SoftBank makes investments in a variety of companies that it groups together in a series of Vision Funds.
The company’s founder, Masayoshi Son, is a pioneer in technology investment in Japan. SoftBank Group does not give earnings forecasts.
Shopify Inc. executives brushed off concerns that incoming U.S. President Donald Trump will be a major detriment to many of the company’s merchants.
“There’s nothing in what we’ve heard from Trump, nor would there have been anything from (Democratic candidate) Kamala (Harris), which we think impacts the overall state of new business formation and entrepreneurship,” Shopify’s chief financial officer Jeff Hoffmeister told analysts on a call Tuesday.
“We still feel really good about all the merchants out there, all the entrepreneurs that want to start new businesses and that’s obviously not going to change with the administration.”
Hoffmeister’s comments come a week after Trump, a Republican businessman, trounced Harris in an election that will soon return him to the Oval Office.
On the campaign trail, he threatened to impose tariffs of 60 per cent on imports from China and roughly 10 per cent to 20 per cent on goods from all other countries.
If the president-elect makes good on the promise, many worry the cost of operating will soar for companies, including customers of Shopify, which sells e-commerce software to small businesses but also brands as big as Kylie Cosmetics and Victoria’s Secret.
These merchants may feel they have no choice but to pass on the increases to customers, perhaps sparking more inflation.
If Trump’s tariffs do come to fruition, Shopify’s president Harley Finkelstein pointed out China is “not a huge area” for Shopify.
However, “we can’t anticipate what every presidential administration is going to do,” he cautioned.
He likened the uncertainty facing the business community to the COVID-19 pandemic where Shopify had to help companies migrate online.
“Our job is no matter what comes the way of our merchants, we provide them with tools and service and support for them to navigate it really well,” he said.
Finkelstein was questioned about the forthcoming U.S. leadership change on a call meant to delve into Shopify’s latest earnings, which sent shares soaring 27 per cent to $158.63 shortly after Tuesday’s market open.
The Ottawa-based company, which keeps its books in U.S. dollars, reported US$828 million in net income for its third quarter, up from US$718 million in the same quarter last year, as its revenue rose 26 per cent.
Revenue for the period ended Sept. 30 totalled US$2.16 billion, up from US$1.71 billion a year earlier.
Subscription solutions revenue reached US$610 million, up from US$486 million in the same quarter last year.
Merchant solutions revenue amounted to US$1.55 billion, up from US$1.23 billion.
Shopify’s net income excluding the impact of equity investments totalled US$344 million for the quarter, up from US$173 million in the same quarter last year.
Daniel Chan, a TD Cowen analyst, said the results show Shopify has a leadership position in the e-commerce world and “a continued ability to gain market share.”
In its outlook for its fourth quarter of 2024, the company said it expects revenue to grow at a mid-to-high-twenties percentage rate on a year-over-year basis.
“Q4 guidance suggests Shopify will finish the year strong, with better-than-expected revenue growth and operating margin,” Chan pointed out in a note to investors.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 12, 2024.
TORONTO – RioCan Real Estate Investment Trust says it has cut almost 10 per cent of its staff as it deals with a slowdown in the condo market and overall pushes for greater efficiency.
The company says the cuts, which amount to around 60 employees based on its last annual filing, will mean about $9 million in restructuring charges and should translate to about $8 million in annualized cash savings.
The job cuts come as RioCan and others scale back condo development plans as the market softens, but chief executive Jonathan Gitlin says the reductions were from a companywide efficiency effort.
RioCan says it doesn’t plan to start any new construction of mixed-use properties this year and well into 2025 as it adjusts to the shifting market demand.
The company reported a net income of $96.9 million in the third quarter, up from a loss of $73.5 million last year, as it saw a $159 million boost from a favourable change in the fair value of investment properties.
RioCan reported what it says is a record-breaking 97.8 per cent occupancy rate in the quarter including retail committed occupancy of 98.6 per cent.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 12, 2024.
