Canada's Woodfibre LNG project to be operational by 2028, says Canada official

TOKYO, June 20 (Reuters) - Canada's Woodfibre liquefied natural gas project looks to be operational by 2028, Erin O'Brien, assistant deputy minister at Canada's department of natural resources, said at an energy conference in Tokyo on Friday.
O'Brien added that the project is poised to be the world's first net-zero LNG facility.

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Canada's retail sales up in April, likely to post big drop in May

OTTAWA, June 20 (Reuters) - Canada's retail sales were up in April on a monthly basis but were below estimates, data showed on Friday, as the momentum seen in the previous months when customers advanced purchases to beat the impact of tariffs continued. Retail sales in April grew by 0.3% to C$70.11 billion ($51.11 billion) from 0.8% observed in the month earlier, Statistics Canada said, adding sales grew in six of the nine subsectors. An advanced estimate of sales shows that the number is likely to contract by 1.1% in May. "Canadian consumers continued to spend in April, but a decline in the May advance estimate for retail sales provides another indication that the economy is heading for a stall in Q2," Andrew Grantham, senior economist at CIBC Capital Markets wrote in a note. Retail sales are closely watched by economists and analysts as they give an indication of the trend of the GDP. They had been largely increasing in the previous months as uncertainty around the timing and magnitude of tariffs brought forward purchases. The sales have started showing signs of decline as tariffs have come into effect and analysts expect that they are likely to go down in the coming months. Feedback from respondents for April highlighted the effects of trade tensions between Canada and the United States on Canadian retail businesses, the statistics agency said. "Despite six of nine subsectors posting monthly gains in retail sales, all nine subsectors saw a negative impact on sales," it said. Analysts polled by Reuters had estimated the April sales to increase by 0.5% on a monthly basis and 0.2% excluding automotive and parts sales. StatsCan reported that excluding automotive and parts sales, the number shrank by 0.3% from a drop of 0.8% in March. The biggest jump in sales in April came from sales at motor vehicle and parts dealers, registering a growth of 1.9%, and was led by sales at new car dealers and used car dealers. This is the biggest category of sales and contributes over a quarter of total retail sales. The biggest drop in sales came from gasoline stations and fuel vendors which shrank by 2.7% and were closely followed by sales at retailers selling clothing and accessories posting a drop of 2.2%. In volume terms, retail sales increased 0.5% in April. ($1 = 1.3718 Canadian dollars)

Daily Mail​

3 hours ago

• Daily Mail​

Nike rival plots layoffs while assessing how to pay for US tariffs… as layoffs spread

A major Nike rival will axe 150 workers — and it may replace them with AI. Lululemon, the Canada-based athleisure brand known for its buttery-soft leggings and sweat-wicking men's shirts and pants, confirmed that it is eliminating roles on its support centre team. The affected employees handled customer service calls — including questions about online orders, return policies, and sizing options — as well as technical support for brick-and-mortar locations. 'As we continue to deliver on our strategy, we regularly assess our business operations to ensure we are well-positioned for the future,' a company spokesperson told 'Following a recent review, we have decided to evolve some aspects of our organizational structure to operate with more agility and further invest in our growth.' Independent retail analysts told CBC they believe the company will turn to AI to fill the gap. The company did not answer questions about its future AI policy. Lululemon's support centre roles are exactly the kind of formulaic, repeatable tasks that advanced computers are designed to handle. Independent retail analysts don't believe the job cuts indicate any issues for the brand. Still, under the hood, there are concerns. 'They are now struggling to generate growth in their core North American market,' Neil Saunders, a retail expert at GlobalData, told 'With costs rising, including from tariffs, Lululemon is gently pruning roles to keep costs in check.' The layoffs also come as the company reassesses its tariff strategy. A majority of Lululemon's products are made in Vietnam, Thailand, and Indonesia — countries that could face sweeping reciprocal tariffs if President Donald Trump reinstates them. In June, the company's CFO, Meghan Frank, admitted that the brand would need to raise prices to offset the levies. 'We are planning to take strategic price increases,' Frank said during the company's last earnings call. 'It will be price increases on a small portion of our assortment, and they will be modest in nature.' Price hikes are expected in stores in the fall. Lululemon pulled in $2.4 billion in revenue during its last quarter, but a majority of the company's growth came from international markets. The company currently operates 465 stores in the US and 760 globally. Jobs jettisoned Some of America's biggest companies have announced sweeping job cuts this year. In May, Walmart — America's largest employer — announced it was cutting 1,500 jobs from its tech operations and e-commerce teams. Procter & Gamble, the owner of Tide detergent and Gillette shaving products, is also undergoing significant cuts. The company said it would eliminate 7,000 positions. Job losses have been even more pronounced in the tech sector, as firms increasingly replace human employees with hyper-intelligent machines. The AI-driven job bloodbath marks a major shift for American workers. For years, mass layoffs were concentrated in US manufacturing plants. Now, they're impacting college-educated, high-to-middle-class earners. Microsoft — one of the leading firms investing in AI — is expected to lay off thousands of employees next month as it shifts resources toward deeper investments. Intel, the flagging tech giant, is also letting go of 10 to 15 percent of its manufacturing staff. Amazon CEO Andy Jassy recently said the quiet part out loud: the technology will uproot thousands of Americans from their jobs. '​​As we roll out more Generative AI and agents, it should change the way our work is done,' he wrote to his employees in a memo. 'It's hard to know exactly where this nets out over time, but in the next few years, we expect that this will reduce our total corporate workforce.' So far, the cuts haven't had a statistically significant impact on overall job numbers in the US. Last month, employers continued to add jobs.

Reuters

3 hours ago

• Reuters

Exclusive: Qatar met with energy majors to discuss risks of Israel-Iran war, sources say

DOHA/LONDON June 20 (Reuters) - Qatar held this week crisis talks with energy majors after Israeli strikes on Iran's huge gas field, which it shares with Qatar, an industry source and a diplomat in the region told Reuters. Doha was asking firms to raise U.S., UK and European governments' awareness of increasing risks to global gas supply, they said. QatarEnergy did not immediately respond to a request for comment.