Two national organizations are warning that there could be shortages of propane and consumer goods in Canada if the current rail blockades continue.
Spokespeople for the Canadian Propane Association and the Retail Council of Canada said on Sunday that they are concerned and frustrated in particular about the impact of the blockade near Belleville, Ont. on Tyendinaga Mohawk territory that has shut down train service across much of Eastern Canada.
The blockade entered its 11th day on Sunday. CN Rail has obtained a court injunction to end the protest, but the Ontario Provincial Police have not yet enforced it.
Similar blockades across the country have cut both passenger and freight rail services, with pressure mounting on the federal government to bring them to an end. The protests are in solidarity with the Wet’suwet’en hereditary chiefs opposed to the LNG pipeline in northern B.C.
Nathalie St-Pierre, president and CEO of the Canadian Propane Association, said there is already rationing of propane in Atlantic Canada, Quebec is thinking about rationing the fuel, and there are long wait lines for trucks to be loaded with propane in Ontario.
“Obviously, there are some issues if nothing is being transported by rail,” St-Pierre said. “Thank goodness the winter is pretty mild at this time. The demand is a bit softer than usual.”
In Ontario, there is still access to propane through Sarnia, Ont. by pipeline, but then the propane has to be transported by rail or by truck. There are wait times of eight to 10 hours in Sarnia for trucks to be loaded with propane, she said. Trucks from other provinces are going to Sarnia because they are not receiving shipments.
She said the waiting times are “critical” and not what she would consider “normal.”
St-Pierre said there are not enough trucks to sustain the demand for propane. The fuel is used in commercial, institutional and residential settings, she said. Forty per cent of Canada’s propane consumption is in Ontario.
A barrier and a fire remain after protesters blockaded trains at Macmillan Yard in Toronto, on Saturday. The protest is in solidarity with the Wet’suwet’en hereditary chiefs opposed to the LNG pipeline in northern British Columbia. (Chris Young/Canadian Press)
Thousands of Canadians use propane to heat their homes, while many businesses and industries use it in their operations. Farmers use to keep livestock warm in barns, for example. Many services, including police, school buses and taxis, use it as a transportation fuel.
“They are talking about continuing the dialogue. But at the same time, and from probably everyone’s perspective, you have to lift the blockades. You can have the dialogue, but at this time, I think the point was made,” she said.
“I don’t think they need to hold all of the Canadian economy hostage and not being able to function. The pressure is mounting.”
Superior Propane, a Mississauga based company, said in a news release last week that it is predicting “critical supply shortages” of propane in Central and Eastern Canada if the blockades continue.
Karl Littler, senior vice president, public affairs, of the Retail Council of Canada, said there will be shortages of household products and consumer goods if the blockades continue. Such goods could include personal hygiene products, infant formula, both cleaning and sanitary products. There is also concern about the shipping of fresh food.
Littler said the blockades affect finished products ready to be put on store shelves and raw materials needed for manufacturing.
Banners hang on a fence as protesters stage a blockade of the rail line at Macmillan Yard in Toronto on Saturday. (Chris Young/Canadian Press)
“We are concerned about it,” Littler said. “There is an inability to move goods cross country through the various choke points. It’s of major concern to retail merchants. It both interrupts the flow of retail ready goods and hampers the manufacturing process for Canadian manufacturing.”
Littler said the council respects the right of people to engage in peaceful protest, but said injunctions have been issued and not all have been enforced. The blockades have implications for the health and safety of Canadians, he added.
“Obviously, we support the right to peaceful protest,” he said. “Our primary concern is, the longer these blockades drag on, the more there is a risk that food and consumer goods will not get through to retail outlets, and obviously, that then affects the daily consumption that Canadians need.”
The council, which represents 45,000 storefronts in Canada, has contacted the federal, Ontario and B.C. governments about the issue.
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.
