HALIFAX —
Nova Scotia has extended the pandemic restrictions in areas of the Halifax Regional Municipality and Hants County for at least one more week.
Dr. Robert Strang noted that Nova Scotia is still reporting daily cases in the double digits, including another 15 on Friday.
“Modelling projects that this will continue for several more days,” Strang said during a news conference in Halifax on Friday. “So we need more time with the existing restrictions in place to see these numbers come down and to be certain they will stay down.”
The restrictions will remain in place until at least Dec. 16.
A decision on whether to continue with restrictions that saw Atlantic Canada’s largest city close down in-person dining at restaurants as well as close public libraries, museums, gyms and casinos, was to be made next Wednesday. Strang said that’s now been moved to Dec. 16.
He said he couldn’t make any promises about what the situation will look like then.
“What I can tell you is that the more we buckle down and stay tight right now . . . the better position we will be in to have some slight relaxation as we enter the holiday weeks before January starts.”
MORE TESTING FOR PEOPLE WITHOUT SYMPTOMS
The province also launched a period of asymptomatic testing across the province to limit the potential spread of the virus by detecting positive cases in people who do not have symptoms.
“For the past week, we have had double-digit case numbers daily and most of them are in the areas where we added restrictions last week. These restrictions are important to help us slow the spread of COVID-19,” said Nova Scotia Premier Stephen McNeil. “We have also ramped up testing significantly as a key measure in containing the virus. Adding more opportunities for asymptomatic testing is another way of enhancing our testing strategy.”
McNeil said that in the last two weeks, public health has conducted more than 7,000 rapid tests and these have helped flag 22 potential cases of COVID-19 from people who had no symptoms.
“Without everyone’s hard work to run these clinics, and without all of you coming forward to be tested, we would not be able to track COVID as quickly,” McNeil said.
15 NEW CASES REPORTED
Health officials in Nova Scotia reported 15 new COVID-19 cases on Friday. With 17 more cases resolved, the number of active cases has dropped to 117.
Eleven of the new cases are located in Nova Scotia’s Central Zone. This includes a case connected to Halifax’s Citadel High School, which was first reported late Thursday.
Three cases are in the Northern Zone and are close contacts of previously reported cases.
The other case is in the Western Zone and is related to travel outside Atlantic Canada.
CASE AT PARK WEST SCHOOL
Nova Scotia Health says a positive case has also been identified at Park West School, a primary to Grade 9 school in Halifax.
The person did not attend school on Friday and is self-isolating.
The school will remain closed to students until Dec. 10 so a deep cleaning can take place. Students will study from home in the meantime.
Nova Scotia health says, as a precautionary measure, the school’s offsite pre-primary location will also be closed until Dec. 10. Students and families can expect an update on Wednesday.
Public health will notify any close contacts of the person who tested positive. Everyone who is a close contact will be notified, tested and required to self-isolate for 14 days.
NEW TESTING FOR ROTATIONAL WORKERS
Strang said the province has added voluntary testing for rotational workers who are not showing symptoms.
Rotational workers can book an appointment through the COVID-19 self-assessment on Day 6, 7, or 8 of their modified self-isolation.
“This will not change any of the restrictions, but it does offer a level of reassurance if they don’t have COVID, and if they do, it will help us contain the virus quicker,” said Strang.
NOVA SCOTIA COVID-19 TESTS
The Nova Scotia Health Authority’s labs completed 1,623 Nova Scotia tests on Thursday.
Since Oct. 1, Nova Scotia has conducted 73,254 tests. There have been 269 positive COVID-19 cases. Of those, 152 cases are considered resolved, leaving 117 active cases.
There have been no deaths during the second wave and no one is in hospital. Cases range in age from under 10 to over 70.
Since the start of the pandemic, Nova Scotia has conducted a total of 196,425 tests, with 1,358 positive cases confirmed overall. Of those, 1,176 cases are considered resolved and 65 people have died.
The province’s overall confirmed cases range in age from under 10 to over 90.
Fifty seven per cent of cases are female and 43 per cent are male.
There are cases confirmed across the province, but most have been identified in the Central Zone, which contains the Halifax Regional Municipality.
The provincial government says cumulative cases by zone may change as data is updated in Panorama, the province’s electronic information system.
The numbers reflect where a person lives and not where their sample was collected.
Western Zone: 63 cases
Central Zone: 1,154 cases
Northern Zone: 86 cases
Eastern Zone: 55 cases
The provincial state of emergency, which was first declared on March 22, has been extended to Dec. 13.
COVID ALERT APP
Canada’s COVID-19 Alert app is available in Nova Scotia.
The app, which can be downloaded through the Apple App Store or Google Play, notifies users if they may have been exposed to someone who has tested positive for COVID-19.
LIST OF SYMPTOMS
Anyone who experiences a fever or new or worsening cough, or two or more of the following new or worsening symptoms, is encouraged to take an online test or call 811 to determine if they need to be tested for COVID-19:
MONTREAL – Travel company Transat AT Inc. reported a loss in its latest quarter compared with a profit a year earlier as its revenue edged lower.
The parent company of Air Transat says it lost $39.9 million or $1.03 per diluted share in its quarter ended July 31.
The result compared with a profit of $57.3 million or $1.49 per diluted share a year earlier.
Revenue in what was the company’s third quarter totalled $736.2 million, down from $746.3 million in the same quarter last year.
On an adjusted basis, Transat says it lost $1.10 per share in its latest quarter compared with an adjusted profit of $1.10 per share a year earlier.
Transat chief executive Annick Guérard says demand for leisure travel remains healthy, as evidenced by higher traffic, but consumers are increasingly price conscious given the current economic uncertainty.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 12, 2024.
Dollarama Inc.’s food aisles may have expanded far beyond sweet treats or piles of gum by the checkout counter in recent years, but its chief executive maintains his company is “not in the grocery business,” even if it’s keeping an eye on the sector.
“It’s just one small part of our store,” Neil Rossy told analysts on a Wednesday call, where he was questioned about the company’s food merchandise and rivals playing in the same space.
“We will keep an eye on all retailers — like all retailers keep an eye on us — to make sure that we’re competitive and we understand what’s out there.”
Over the last decade and as consumers have more recently sought deals, Dollarama’s food merchandise has expanded to include bread and pantry staples like cereal, rice and pasta sold at prices on par or below supermarkets.
However, the competition in the discount segment of the market Dollarama operates in intensified recently when the country’s biggest grocery chain began piloting a new ultra-discount store.
The No Name stores being tested by Loblaw Cos. Ltd. in Windsor, St. Catharines and Brockville, Ont., are billed as 20 per cent cheaper than discount retail competitors including No Frills. The grocery giant is able to offer such cost savings by relying on a smaller store footprint, fewer chilled products and a hearty range of No Name merchandise.
Though Rossy brushed off notions that his company is a supermarket challenger, grocers aren’t off his radar.
“All retailers in Canada are realistic about the fact that everyone is everyone’s competition on any given item or category,” he said.
Rossy declined to reveal how much of the chain’s sales would overlap with Loblaw or the food category, arguing the vast variety of items Dollarama sells is its strength rather than its grocery products alone.
“What makes Dollarama Dollarama is a very wide assortment of different departments that somewhat represent the old five-and-dime local convenience store,” he said.
The breadth of Dollarama’s offerings helped carry the company to a second-quarter profit of $285.9 million, up from $245.8 million in the same quarter last year as its sales rose 7.4 per cent.
The retailer said Wednesday the profit amounted to $1.02 per diluted share for the 13-week period ended July 28, up from 86 cents per diluted share a year earlier.
The period the quarter covers includes the start of summer, when Rossy said the weather was “terrible.”
“The weather got slightly better towards the end of the summer and our sales certainly increased, but not enough to make up for the season’s horrible start,” he said.
Sales totalled $1.56 billion for the quarter, up from $1.46 billion in the same quarter last year.
Comparable store sales, a key metric for retailers, increased 4.7 per cent, while the average transaction was down2.2 per cent and traffic was up seven per cent, RBC analyst Irene Nattel pointed out.
She told investors in a note that the numbers reflect “solid demand as cautious consumers focus on core consumables and everyday essentials.”
Analysts have attributed such behaviour to interest rates that have been slow to drop and high prices of key consumer goods, which are weighing on household budgets.
To cope, many Canadians have spent more time seeking deals, trading down to more affordable brands and forgoing small luxuries they would treat themselves to in better economic times.
“When people feel squeezed, they tend to shy away from discretionary, focus on the basics,” Rossy said. “When people are feeling good about their wallet, they tend to be more lax about the basics and more willing to spend on discretionary.”
The current economic situation has drawn in not just the average Canadian looking to save a buck or two, but also wealthier consumers.
“When the entire economy is feeling slightly squeezed, we get more consumers who might not have to or want to shop at a Dollarama generally or who enjoy shopping at a Dollarama but have the luxury of not having to worry about the price in some other store that they happen to be standing in that has those goods,” Rossy said.
“Well, when times are tougher, they’ll consider the extra five minutes to go to the store next door.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 11, 2024.
TORONTO – The U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has ordered TD Bank Group to pay US$28 million for repeatedly sharing inaccurate, negative information about its customers to consumer reporting companies.
The agency says TD has to pay US$7.76 million in total to tens of thousands of victims of its illegal actions, along with a US$20 million civil penalty.
It says TD shared information that contained systemic errors about credit card and bank deposit accounts to consumer reporting companies, which can include credit reports as well as screening reports for tenants and employees and other background checks.
CFPB director Rohit Chopra says in a statement that TD threatened the consumer reports of customers with fraudulent information then “barely lifted a finger to fix it,” and that regulators will need to “focus major attention” on TD Bank to change its course.
TD says in a statement it self-identified these issues and proactively worked to improve its practices, and that it is committed to delivering on its responsibilities to its customers.
The bank also faces scrutiny in the U.S. over its anti-money laundering program where it expects to pay more than US$3 billion in monetary penalties to resolve.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 11, 2024.
