Good evening,
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
Canadian unemployment hits record low as economy adds 27,700 jobs
Economists had braced for the possibility of a small pullback in employment last month (for subscribers). Instead, the labour market posted an almost unheard-of growth run in an economic indicator that is typically prone to ups and downs from month to month.
However, economists cautioned that details beneath the surface were mixed, with both encouraging signs and several weak spots. They noted that the drop in unemployment was largely because of a decline of nearly 50,000 in the size of the labour force – something not typically associated with labour-market strength.
This month’s gains were led by increases in health care and social services (up 20,400 jobs) and professional, scientific and technical services (up 17,200). On the downside, the business and building-support services segment lost 19,400 jobs, while accommodations and restaurant employment fell 12,400.
Opinion: Women’s World Cup is still missing the respect it deserves
As the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup unfolds in France, John Doyle believes there is still something lacking. Mainly, respect (for subscribers). Unbalanced media coverage and unequal pay are factors that prove this problem hasn’t changed much since the first Women’s World Cup in 1991.
This year there’s another issue: that this WWC is obliged to compete for attention with two overlapping tournaments in the men’s game for both the Gold Cup and the Copa America. That means men’s teams from North, Central America and the Caribbean are fighting the World Cup for soccer fans.
Canada will be playing its first game on Monday against Cameroon. Canada’s last World Cup finish was fourth place in 2003, but this year its expected the Canadians will be a tough out. Keep an eye out for Christine Sinclair, a 14-time player of the year, who is expected to head into international retirement.
As the World Cup kicks off today, get to know the teams and what to expect during the tournament with this primer (for subscribers).
Trudeau and Macron meet in Paris amid lagging polls
Both leaders defended their efforts to ease the worries of their citizens, denounced those seeking to capitalize on such fears and dismissed the notion that their message wasn’t breaking through to an anxious electorate — but the looming question is whether or not voters in each country are buying it (for subscribers).
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and French President Emmanuel Macron both spoke on job automation, climate change, free trade and immigration.
Without naming anyone in particular, the leaders singled out for blame those Trudeau described as trying “to amplify or echo back those fears to people without actually offering solutions,” before touting their shared attempts at home and abroad to address those fears.
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WHAT ELSE IS ON OUR RADAR
Ontario is moving to force large food retailers and product manufacturers to pay the full cost of recycling
The move reflects concerns about pollution and the effectiveness of municipal waste programs that have been overwhelmed by single-use and hard-to-recycle packaging (for subscribers).
Raptors take on Game 4 tonight in Oakland
Toronto Raptors fans risk ridicule cheering on the team deep in Golden State Warriors territory.
Facebook is no longer allowing pre-installation of its apps on Huawei phones
Customers who already have Huawei phones will still be able to use its apps and receive updates, but new Huawei phones will no longer be able to have Facebook, WhatsApp and Instagram apps pre-installed.
Mexico seeks Canada’s backing to help address rise of Central American migrant flow
The United States is threatening to derail Mexico’s trade and North America’s trade agreement, but Mexico has a longer-term idea for dealing with the problem: a US$30-billion “Marshall Plan” to develop Central America (for subscribers).
Toyota aims to have half of its global sales from electrified vehicles by 2025, five years ahead of schedule
The change illustrates the growth in the electric-vehicle market and an acknowledgment by Japan’s top automaker that it may not be able to meet demand for batteries on its own as they partner with Chinese battery makers.
‘A life-and-death situation’: National Inuit group releases climate change strategy
The plan calls for renewed infrastructure that is threatened by permafrost melt and recommends turning away from aging, carbon-intensive diesel generators that power northern communities (for subscribers).
MARKET WATCH
Wall Street’s major indexes charged higher today, as sharply slowing U.S. job growth boosted hopes for Federal Reserve interest rate cuts while optimism about potential progress in U.S. trade fights with China and Mexico added to risk appetites.
Canada’s main stock index rose slightly on the back of a very positive jobs report. The S&P/TSX composite index was up 3.16 points at 16,230.96.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 263.28 points to 25,983.94, the S&P 500 gained 29.85 points to 2,873.34 and the Nasdaq Composite added 126.55 points to 7,742.10.
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TALKING POINTS
The term ‘neighbourhood character’ is a euphemism for something ugly
“On the surface, it speaks about architecture and aesthetic concerns, but its substance is about who gets to live where and who, especially today, gets shut out.” - Alex Bozikovic (for subscribers)
Basketball and hip-hop are intertwined, of course Drake is part of the Raptors
“The Toronto we see today on the world stage at the NBA Finals is a city that has absorbed the bold self-confidence embedded in hip-hop culture.” - Mark Campbell
Andrew Scheer finally reveals who he is (and who he isn’t)
“He is a cautious politician, though more calculating than you might think.” - Konrad Yakabuski (for subscribers)
Why I’ve climbed onto the Raptors bandwagon
“It’s not about exclusion or division or who belongs and who doesn’t.” - Aviva Rubin
LIVING BETTER
Climate change caused by human behaviour is an increasingly important issue and for a city like Toronto, a lot of problems have to do with land use. Half the total carbon emissions in Canada came from buildings, transportation and electricity in 2016. But most North American estimates say that transportation is worse than building emissions, meaning that we should focus on creating walkable, smarter cities.
On the other hand, constructing new buildings is a massive cause of emissions, and the buildings themselves have sizable emission footprints without trying to use green alternatives. All things put into perspective, we now have an urgent reason to reconsider our outdated assumptions about the social importance of “stable” neighbourhoods and the status quo.
An anti-growth sentiment is strong in Toronto, and it’s stopping us from evolving. We need to think about new policies, and bring a willingness to shake up the way we build the city going forward and push in a more sustainable direction. Toronto (and the planet) need a change, and we need it soon.
Read more of the excerpt from House Divided: How the Missing Middle can Solve Toronto’s Housing Crisis.
LONG READ FOR A LONG COMMUTE
In the small African country of Djibouti, the U.S. and China have built heavily guarded bases only a few kilometres apart. If there is a military front line in the growing global tensions between the two powers, it’s in this small country of less than a million people. As a result, Djibouti has become a magnet for international espionage and intrigue.
This is China’s first overseas military base and their troops have already held live-fire combat drills – the largest-scale exercises it has ever conducted on foreign soil. Since the beginning of President Donald Trump’s presidency, the Pentagon has openly declared that it is entering an era of “great power competition” with China and tried to persuade Djibouti to deny permission for the Chinese base.
Now, the world is watching the crossroads between Asia, Africa and the Middle East in an increasingly tense standoff for global supremacy. What could possibly go wrong?
Evening Update is written by Sierra Bein. If you’d like to receive this newsletter by e-mail every weekday evening, go here to sign up. If you have any feedback, send us a note.
Sierra Bein