Here are the latest Top News stories from The Canadian Press. All times are Eastern unless otherwise stated. Coverage plans are included when available. Entries are subject to change as news develops.
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TOP HEADLINES:
Autopsies for border deaths have begun: RCMP
Feds failing to review takeover a mistake: expert
Some COVID rules lifting despite hospitalizations
Police prepare for violence from truckers convoy
Canada extends, expands Ukraine training mission
Quebec to track COVID rapid test results
Ontarians wait for surgeries delayed due to COVID
Bank of Canada keeps key rate on hold at 0.25%
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NEW TOP STORIES SINCE THE LAST ADVISORY:
Autopsies for border deaths have begun: RCMP
Mba-Border-Deaths-Autopsies
Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada -- Mounties say autopsies have begun as they try to identify the four people who were found dead in a frigid Manitoba blizzard near the United States border. Wire: National. Photos: 1
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Feds failing to review takeover a mistake: expert
Cda-China-Lithium
Ottawa, Ontario, Canada -- An intelligence expert says the federal government's decision not to conduct a formal national security review on the takeover of a Canadian lithium mining company by a Chinese state-owned company was a "mistake." Wire: National.
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B.C. forest watchdog links logging, water risks
Forest-Practices-Water
Victoria, British Columbia, Canada -- British Columbia's forest watchdog has identified four key areas where the management of forestry practices can negatively affect water and outlines potential opportunities for the province to improve regulations. Wire: Prairies/BC. Photos: 1
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Canadian indie band the Elwins call it quits
MUSIC-The-Elwins
Toronto, Ontario, Canada -- Canadian pop-rock band the Elwins say they've decided to break up as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to challenge the future of touring life. By David Friend. Wire: Entertainment. Photos: 1
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UPDATED COVID-19 AND OMICRON:
Some COVID rules lifting despite hospitalizations
COVID-Cda
Quebec announced Wednesday it is tracking COVID-19 rapid test results, as Saskatchewan said it will consider dropping restrictions as society learns to live with the virus. By Alanna Smith. Wire: National. Photos: 1
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Saskatchewan considers lifting some COVID rules
COVID-Sask
Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada -- Saskatchewan's chief medical health officer says the province is considering whether to lift some COVID-19 measures but emphasized that booster shots will remain critical in reducing serious illness and preserving the health-care system. By Mickey Djuric. Wire: Prairies/BC. Photos: 1
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Manitoba's current pandemic peak may be close
COVID-Mba
Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada -- Manitoba's chief public health officer says the province may be close to the peak of the current COVID-19 wave. Wire: Prairies/BC. Photos: 1
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Rapid tests to arrive at B.C. child-care centres
COVID-BC
Victoria, British Columbia, Canada -- Staff in government-funded child-care centres are soon expected to have access to rapid antigen tests provided by the province. Wire: Prairies/BC. Photos: 1
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Ontarians wait for surgeries delayed due to COVID
COVID-Ont-Surgeries
The waiting has become excruciating for Shelley Brownlee and her partner, Jonathan Clow. By Noushin Ziafati. Wire: Ontario/Quebec. Photos: 1
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Boosted people fear COVID-19 more: survey
COVID-Poll
Ottawa, Ontario, Canada -- A new survey suggests a widening gap between the pandemic views of people who have opted to get a COVID-19 vaccine booster and those who are holding steady with only two shots. By Laura Osman. Wire: National. Photos: 1
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Child-care operators urge expanded PCR eligibility
Ont-Child-Care
Toronto, Ontario, Canada -- Ontario child-care operators and staff are calling on the provincial government to take steps to make daycares safer during the COVID-19 pandemic and to ensure the sector's long-term viability. By Allison Jones. Wire: Ontario/Quebec.
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Ontario reports 608 COVID patients in ICU
COVID-Ont
Ontario is reporting 608 people in intensive care with COVID-19 and 4,016 people hospitalized with the virus. Wire: Ontario/Quebec.
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Quebec death toll due to booster delay: experts
COVID-Que-Deaths
Montreal, Quebec, Canada -- January isn't over, but with 1,144 COVID-19 deaths reported this month in Quebec, it's already the fifth deadliest month of the COVID-19 pandemic in the province. By Jacob Serebrin. Wire: Ontario/Quebec. Photos: 1
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UPDATED OTHER TOP NEWS STORIES:
Police prepare for violence from truckers convoy
Trucker-Protest
Ottawa, , -- A convoy of truckers set to descend upon Ottawa to protest a vaccine mandate for cross-border drivers is prompting police to prepare for violence and politicians to warn against escalating rhetoric linked to the demonstration. By Marie Woolf and Joan Bryden. Wire: National, Ontario/Quebec. Photos: 1
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Canada extends, expands Ukraine training mission
Cda-Ukraine
Ottawa, Ontario, Canada -- Canada is extending and expanding its mission to train Ukrainian soldiers but it is not, so far, prepared to help arm them with lethal weapons as Ukraine has requested. By Joan Bryden. Wire: National. Photos: 1
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How agents keep tabs on the Canada-U.S. border
Mba-Border-Deaths
Saint Vincent, Minnesota, United States -- A bleak panorama of frozen, windblown prairie extends in every direction behind Katy Siemer as she points north, past a barren stand of trees to a pipeline compressor station a few hundred metres away in Manitoba. By James McCarten. Wire: National. Photos: 1
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Four dead at home in Richmond, B.C.
Targeted-Shooting-BC
Richmond, British Columbia, Canada -- Police say four people were found dead at a home in Richmond, B.C., in what they describe as a targeted shooting. Wire: National. Photos: 1
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Bank of Canada keeps key rate on hold at 0.25%
BoC-Rate
Ottawa, Ontario, Canada -- The Bank of Canada is keeping its key interest rate target on hold at 0.25 per cent, but warning it won't stay there for much longer. By Jordan Press. Wire: National, Business. Photos: 1
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Conservative MPs prepare for election report
Conservatives-O'Toole
Ottawa, , -- Conservative MPs meeting for a two-day retreat say they don't expect to be shown the entire review into the party's election loss. By Stephanie Taylor. Wire: National.
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Big-city mayors urgently ask feds to fund transit
FCM-Transit
Ottawa, Ontario, Canada -- Canada's big-city mayors are calling for the federal government's help to make up huge shortfalls in transit revenue that threaten to derail the nation's transit systems. By Laura Osman. Wire: National.
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B.C. Appeal Court extends Fairy Creek injunction
Old-Growth-Blockades
Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada -- British Columbia's Court of Appeal has overturned a lower-court ruling and extended an injunction against old-growth logging protests until September on Vancouver Island. Wire: National. Photos: 1
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Attacks on homeless a hate crime: police
Alta-Stabbing-Attack
Calgary, Alberta, Canada -- Police in Calgary say stabbing attacks on three homeless people days before Christmas were motivated by hate. Wire: Prairies/BC. Photos: 1
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Man enters guilty pleas in triple homicide
Sask-Triple-Homicide
Prince Albert, Saskatchewan, Canada -- A Saskatchewan man has pleaded guilty to killing his parents and his son almost two years ago in the home the couple shared with him. Wire: Prairies/BC. Photos:
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Two dead after poisoning inside Quebec home
Que-Poisoning-Deaths
Montreal, Quebec, Canada -- Quebec provincial police say two people are dead and two others are in hospital after an apparent carbon monoxide poisoning inside a home in Venise-en-Québec, near the U.S. border southwest of Montreal. Wire: Ontario/Quebec. Photos: 1
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Former N.S. fugitive granted day parole
NS-Skinner-Parole
Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada -- A man who was a fugitive in Latin America for five years after fatally shooting another man in Nova Scotia is out of prison on day parole. Wire: Atlantic. Photos: 1
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New Brunswick woman charged following Amber Alert
NB-Amber-Alert
Miramichi, New Brunswick, Canada -- A 33-year-old woman is being charged with abduction following an Amber Alert in New Brunswick on Tuesday in connection with a missing six-year-old boy. Wire: Atlantic. Photos: 1
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B.C. steelhead species faces extinction: letter
Steelhead-Protection
Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada -- Fishery and conservation groups in British Columbia warn a unique species of ocean-going trout faces a "severe conservation crisis" and must be added to Canada's Species at Risk Act. Wire: Prairies/BC.
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Some people upbeat about economic outlook: poll
Economy-Poll
Ottawa, Ontario, Canada -- A new poll suggests some Canadians are feeling more upbeat about the state of the domestic economy and their own pocketbooks, though not quite as positive as they were before the COVID-19 pandemic. By Jordan Press. Wire: National. Photos: 1
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N.L.'s Muskrat Falls delayed — again — until May
NL-Muskrat-Falls
St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada -- Final commissioning for the beleaguered Muskrat Falls hydroelectricity project in Newfoundland and Labrador has been delayed once again. Wire: Atlantic. Photos: 1
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Vancouver Canucks name Patrik Allvin GM
HKN-Canucks-GM
Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada -- The Vancouver Canucks have filled their vacant general manager position, hiring Pittsburgh Penguins assistant manger Patrik Allvin. Wire: Sports.
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Auger-Aliassime drops five-set heartbreaker
TEN-Australian-Open-Canadians
Melbourne, Victoria, Australia -- Félix Auger-Aliassime was one point away from a win over world No. 2 Daniil Medvedev and a spot in the Australian Open semifinals. By Stephanie Myles. Wire: Sports. Photos: 1
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LOCAL JOURNALISM INITIATIVE STORIES:
The LJI is a federally funded program to add coverage in under-covered areas or on under-covered issues. This content is delivered on the CP wire in the "Y" or spare news category, or you can register to access it at https://lji-ijl.ca. This content is created and submitted by participating publishers and is not edited by The Canadian Press. Please credit stories to the reporter, their media outlet and the Local Journalism Initiative. Questions should be directed to LJI supervising editor Amy Logan at amy.logan@thecanadianpress.com. Below is a sample of the dozens of stories moved daily:
Rural populations increasing at faster rate than urban
LJI-ALTA-RURBAN
Recently released data from Statistics Canada shows rural populations are increasing at a faster rate than urban populations for the first time. 450 words. Kendall King/Medicine Hat News
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Chief of Sagkeeng First Nation pleased with charges in man's death in custody, still angry over his treatment
LJI-Man-Jail-Death
The Chief of the Sagkeeng First Nation says although he was pleased to learn last week that a corrections officer has been arrested and charged in the death of a Sagkeeng man, he and other Indigenous leaders are also angry about the man’s death, and about his supposed treatment while behind bars in Manitoba. 750 words. PHOTO. Dave Baxter/Winnipeg Sun
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Cross-country skier recounts harrowing dog attack
LJI-ON-DogAttack
An Ontario woman from Selwyn Township says she’s lucky to be alive after a vicious attack by three dogs left her with dozens of bite wounds on her legs, arms, back, shoulder and head, requiring about 40 stitches. 650 words. Brendan Burke/The Peterborough Examiner
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FROM AP:
The latest AP News Digest is unavailable. This is the previous version.
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ONLY ON AP
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POLL-TRUST-IN-SCIENCE — Republicans’ faith in science is falling as Democrats rely on it even more, with a trust gap in science and medicine widening substantially during the COVID-19 pandemic. It’s the largest gap in nearly five decades of polling by the General Social Survey, a trend survey conducted by NORC at the University of Chicago that has been measuring confidence in institutions since 1972. That is unsurprising to more than a dozen scientists reached by The Associated Press for comment, but it concerns many of them. Overall, 48% of Americans say they have “a great deal” of confidence in the scientific community. Sixty-four percent of Democrats say that, compared with 34% of Republicans. By Seth Borenstein and Hannah Fingerhut. SENT: 895 words, photos.
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TOP STORIES
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SUPREME-COURT-BREYER-RETIREMENT — Liberal Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer is retiring, giving President Joe Biden an opening he has pledged to fill by naming the first Black woman to the high court, two sources told The Associated Press. Breyer, 83, has been a pragmatic force on a court that has grown increasingly conservative in recent years, trying to forge majorities with more moderate justices right and left of center. By Mark Sherman and Michael Balsamo. SENT: 1,030 words, photos.
SUPREME-COURT-BIDEN — President Biden has already narrowed the field for his U.S. Supreme Court pick. During his campaign and since his election, the president has said would nominate a Black woman to the bench, making history in a couple of ways. It would mark the first time four women would sit together on the high court and the first time two of the court’s nine members would be Black justices. Justice Clarence Thomas is the court’s only Black justice and only the second Black justice in the country’s history after the man he replaced on the court, civil rights icon Thurgood Marshall. By Jessica Gresko and Colleen Long. SENT: 995 words, photos.
UKRAINE-TENSIONS — Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the U.S. has made no concessions to the main Russian demands over Ukraine and NATO in a written response delivered to Moscow. Russia has demanded guarantees that NATO will never admit Ukraine and other ex-Soviet nations as members and that the alliance will roll back troop deployments in other former Soviet bloc nations. These are nonstarters for the U.S. and its allies. By Vladimir Isachenkov. SENT: 1,150 words, photos. WITH: UKRAINE-TENSIONS-THINGS-TO-KNOW — Ukraine crisis updates: What to know as tensions rise. SENT:1,005 words, photos. WITH: RUSSIA-UKRAINE-BIDEN-ALLIANCES — Biden’s big test: Proving he can rally allies against Putin. SENT: 1,100 words, photos.
UKRAINE-ON THE FRONT LINES — The trenches are dusted with snow and tinged with a mix of soot and dirt. Dull colors will cling to them for weeks to come, as the men inside search for enough cell signal to hear the latest from the distant capitals that will decide their fate. As Western-supplied weapons land by the planeload in Kyiv, soldiers and civilians alike wait here with helpless anticipation for decisions made by people who know little about Ukraine and even less about the eastern front lines. By Inna Varenytsia and Lori Hinnant. SENT: 940 words, photos.
For full coverage of Ukraine.
VIRUS-OUTBREAK-VACCINE — A Biden administration mandate requiring workers at hospitals, nursing home and other medical centers to be vaccinated against COVID-19 takes effect in half of the country this week. By David Lieb. UPCOMING: 700 words, photos by 3 p.m.
VIRUS-OUTBREAK — Boston’s Brigham & Women’s Hospital is defending its decision to deny a man a heart transplant in part because he refused to be vaccinated for COVID-19, raising the likelihood of a poor outcome. By Philip Marcelo. UPCOMING: 800 words, photos by 4 p.m.
FEDERAL RESERVE — The Federal Reserve signaled that it plans to start raising interest rates to fight high inflation -- a prospect that has shaken markets for fear that higher borrowing costs will sap consumer spending, shrink corporate profits and raise the risk of another recession. By Economics Writer Christopher Rugaber. SENT: 910 words, photos, developing.
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MORE ON THE SUPREME COURT
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SUPREME-COURT-DEMOCRATS — Senate Democrats who have played defense for the last three Supreme Court vacancies plan to move swiftly to replace retiring Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer, using the rapid 2020 confirmation of Justice Amy Coney Barrett as a new standard. UPCOMING: 900 words, photos by 5 p.m.
SUPREME-COURT-EXPLAINER — A look at the Supreme Court confirmation process and what we know -- and don’t know -- about what’s to come. UPCOMING: 900 words, photos by 5 p.m.
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TRENDING NEWS
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CAPSIZED BOAT-FLORIDA — The Coast Guard battled time and currents as its planes and ships searched for 38 people missing off the coast of Florida, four days after a suspected human smuggling boat capsized in a storm. SENT: 855 words, photos.
REL-VATICAN-GAYS — Pope Francis urged parents not to condemn their children if they are gay, in his latest gesture of outreach to the LGBTQ community which has long been marginalized by the Catholic hierarchy. SENT: 275 words, photos.
REL-VATICAN’S-POPE’S-KNEE — Pope Francis is suffering from an inflamed ligament in his right knee that makes walking and going up and down stairs painful. SENT: 210 words, photos.
CALIFORNIA-OLDEST FISH — Meet Methuselah, the oldest living aquarium fish. SENT: 400 words, photos, video.
GERMANY-MASH-CLASH — Two female inmates at a German prison have been served a hefty fine for a brawl that began with a food fight. SENT: 120 words.
POLITICAL-CONSULTANT-MURDER-PLOT — A political consultant in New Jersey has admitted paying two men to kill a longtime associate in 2014 who worked with him on various campaigns. SENT: 430 words.
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MORE ON THE VIRUS OUTBREAK
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VIRUS OUTBREAK-CHINA — Repeated COVID-19 testing of millions of Beijing residents is starting to test the patience of some as the city clamps down on the virus ahead of the coming Winter Olympics. SENT: 450 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-GERMANY-PROTESTS — A growing number of people in Germany have joined grassroots initiatives and demonstrations to speak out against vaccination opponents, conspiracy theorists and far-right extremists who have been protesting COVID-19 measures. SENT: 800 words, photos. WITH: VIRUS OUTBREAK-GERMANY — German lawmakers to debate possible COVID vaccine mandate. SENT: 435 words, photo.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-SOUTH KOREA — South Korea began enforcing new COVID-19 response measures, including reduced quarantine periods and expanded rapid testing, as its new cases jumped nearly 50% in a day. SENT: 560 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-AUSTRIA — Austria will end its lockdown for unvaccinated residents next Monday — one day before a COVID-19 vaccine mandate takes effect in the country, the country’s chancellor announced. SENT: 300 words, photo.
WHO PANDEMIC REPORT — The World Health Organization says there were 21 million new coronavirus cases reported globally last week, the highest weekly number of COVID-19 cases recorded since the pandemic began. SENT: 320 words, photos.
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OLYMPICS
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OLY--EXPLAINER-COVID TESTING — Athletes are facing the possibility of testing positive for COVID-19 in Beijing and being trapped in isolation, even if they’re not sick. A look at how organizers plan to use PCR tests to determine who’s kept in isolation. UPCOMING: 700 words, photos by 7:30 p.m.
OLY-XXC-SKI-WAXING-RESTRICTIONS — The on-again, off-again ban on toxic, high-end waxes that help cross country skis glide smoothly over the snow is off when it comes to the Winter Olympics. The testing device isn’t ready. Without a tester, cross country skiing officials aren’t able to make sure everyone is playing fairly. Biathlon doesn’t have a test either, so they require teams to sign a form saying they won’t use it and face a fine if they’re caught. Two biathlon federations have been sanctioned so far. SENT: 840 words, photos.
THE THOUGHTFUL RIDER — There is part of Jamie Anderson, a two-time snowboard gold medalist, that wishes these upcoming Olympics weren’t in China. By National Writer Eddie Pells. SENT: 870 words, photos.
OLYMPIANS-VIRUS — Two members of Norway’s women’s cross-country ski squad have tested positive for the coronavirus ahead of next month’s Beijing Olympics, the team says. SENT: 340 words.
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WASHINGTON/POLITICS
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EPA-ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE — The Environmental Protection Agency is taking a series of enforcement actions to address air pollution, unsafe drinking water and other problems afflicting minority communities in three Gulf Coast states, following a “Journey to Justice” tour by Administrator Michael Regan last fall. SENT: 810 words, photos.
FEDERAL PROSECUTORS — President Joe Biden is nominating six lawyers to run U.S. attorney’s offices across the country, a diverse group of candidates in the latest picks for the top law enforcement positions. SENT: 580 words, photo.
MEDICARE-NURSING-HOMES — Shining a light on key markers for nursing home quality, Medicare said it is now posting details on staff turnover and weekend nurse coverage on its “Care Compare” website, where families can research a facility. SENT: 475 words.
CAPITOL-RIOT-HATE-SYMBOL — A Virginia man who wore a “Camp Auschwitz” sweatshirt at the U.S. Capitol during last year’s riot has pleaded guilty to joining the mob of people who stormed the building. Photographs of Robert Keith Packer wearing the sweatshirt with the anti-Semitic message went viral after the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection. SENT: 300 words, photo.
ELECTION-2022-SENATE-GEORGIA — Democratic U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock of Georgia reports raising a hefty $9.8 million in the last quarter of 2021, nearly twice the fundraising haul touted by Herschel Walker, the leading Republican contender for the seat. Walker’s campaign released a statement saying the former football star had raised $5.4 million in the three-month period ending Dec. 31. SENT: 495 words, photos.
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NATIONAL
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GEORGE-FLOYD-OFFICERS-CIVIL-RIGHTS — A paramedic who treated George Floyd on the day he was killed testified at the federal trial of three former Minneapolis police officers that he wasn’t told Floyd wasn’t breathing and had no pulse when officers upgraded the urgency of an ambulance call. Prosecutors say the three officers failed to act to save Floyd’s life as fellow Officer Derek Chauvin knelt on Floyd’s neck for 9 1/2 minutes while Floyd was handcuffed, facedown and gasping for air. UPCOMING: 800 words, photos by 4 p.m. WITH: GEORGE FLOYD-OFFICERS-CIVIL RIGHTS-EXPLAINER-EXCITED DELIRIUM — The controversial term “excited delirium” has surfaced at the civil rights trial of three officers charged in George Floyd’s killing. What does it mean? UPCOMING: 700 words, photos by 4 p.m.
CALIFORNIA-GUN LIABILITY LAW — A California city voted to require gun owners to carry liability insurance in what’s believed to be the first measure of its kind in the United States. SENT: 510 words, photos, video.
ENVIRONMENTAL-JUSTICE-LA-OIL-WELLS — The Los Angeles City Council is expected to vote on a measure that would ban new oil and gas wells in the nation’s second most populous city and phase out hundreds of existing ones. SENT: 275 words.
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INTERNATIONAL
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BRITAIN-POLITICS — Prime Minister Boris Johnson is bracing for the conclusions of an investigation into allegations of lockdown-breaching parties, a document that could help him end weeks of scandal and discontent, or bring his time in office to an abrupt close. SENT: 490 words, photos.
MIDEAST-ISLAMIC-STATE — U.S.-backed Kurdish-led forces said they wrestled control of the last section of a prison seized by Islamic State militants and freed a number of child detainees they had used as human shields. That ended a deadly, weeklong assault by the extremists on one of the largest detention facilities in Syria. SENT: 945 words, photos.
SYRIA-ISLAMIC-STATE-EXPLAINER — A distressing series of voice notes sent by an Australian teenager from a prison in northeast Syria underscores the plight of thousands of forgotten children who remain trapped in detention facilities in Syria and Iraq. Hundreds of minors are believed to be holed up in Gweiran Prison, which has been at the center of an ongoing violent standoff between Islamic State group militants and U.S.-backed Kurdish fighters that began a week ago. SENT: 845 words, photo.
ISRAEL-SETTLERS’ STRENGTH — The West Bank settlement of Homesh was formally demolished by the Israeli government in 2005, but settlers continue to visit the site and have even established a Jewish seminary there — all with protection from the Israeli military. SENT: 1,090 words, photos.
MEXICO-REMITTANCE TOWN — The Mexican town of Comachuen, a Puerpecha indigenous community of about 10,000 nestled high in the pine-clad mountains of the western state of Michoacan, survives because of the money sent home by migrants working in the United States. SENT: 1,170 words, photos. WITH: MEXICO-REMITTANCES-IMPORTANCE — Mexico’s remittances pass $50 billion, surge during pandemic. SENT: 680 words, photos.
TONGA-VOLCANO-ERUPTION — The Australian navy’s largest ship docked at disaster-stricken Tonga and was allowed to unload humanitarian supplies in the South Pacific nation despite crew members being infected with COVID-19, officials say. SENT: 330 words, photo.
VATICAN-SEX ABUSE-BENEDICT — The Vatican strongly defended Pope Benedict XVI’s record in fighting clergy sexual abuse and cautioned against looking for “easy scapegoats and summary judgments,” after an independent report faulted his handling of four cases of abuse when he was archbishop of Munich, Germany. SENT: 570 words, photos.
YEMEN — Forces of Yemen’s internationally recognized government and their United Arab Emirates-backed allies swept through a strategic central province, forcing Houthi rebels out of its second largest district, officials say. SENT: 480 words.
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HEALTH & SCIENCE
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SCI-FUSION-MILESTONE — Scientists say they have been able to spark a fusion reaction that briefly sustained itself, a significant milestone on the long path to fusion power. Researchers at the U.S. National Ignition Facility reported they used energy of 192 lasers to heat hydrogen to 100 million degrees and spark the reaction. SENT: 665 words, photos.
ASIA-MEKONG-NEW SPECIES — A monkey with ghostly white circles around its eyes is among 224 new species listed in the World Wildlife Fund’s latest update on the greater Mekong region. SENT: 560 words, photos.
RIGHT-WHALE-GENETICS -- Greater reliance on genetic testing of baby whales and their mothers can provide more accurate information about a rare species and increase the chances of saving them from extinction, according to the authors of a new scientific study. The scientists, led by researchers at the New England Aquarium in Boston, studied critically endangered North Atlantic right whales, of which there are fewer than 340 in the world. SENT: 550 words, photos.
GUINEA-WORM — The number of people infected with Guinea worm dropped to just over a dozen worldwide last year as health workers try to eradicate the disease. That’s according to The Carter Center, which said that its surveillance program identified just 14 cases in four African countries last year. SENT: 415 words, photos.
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BUSINESS/ECONOMY
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FINANCIAL MARKETS — Stocks gained ground on Wall Street Wednesday as investors review a mostly solid round of earnings reports and await the Federal Reserve’s latest policy statement. SENT: 575 words, photos.
NEW HOME SALES — Sales of new single family homes in December rose to their highest level in 10 months as buyers snapped up cheaper homes in anticipation of higher interest rates. The Commerce Department reported that December’s increase put the seasonally adjusted annual sales pace to 811,000 for the month, an 11.9% increase over November’s figure, which was revised down to 725,000 from 744,000. SENT: 400 words, photos.
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ENTERTAINMENT
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SWITZERLAND-DIGITAL PICASSO — Heirs of Pablo Picasso, the famed 20th-century Spanish artist, are vaulting into 21st-century commerce by selling 1,010 digital art pieces of one of his ceramic works that has never before been seen publicly — riding a fad for “crypto” assets that have taken the art and financial worlds by storm. SENT: 680 words, photos.
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SPORTS
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BBO-SPRING-TRAINING — Major League Baseball’s spring training games don’t count in the official standings. But they do count for fans who love to make the trip to Arizona and Florida each year. They also count for businesses that count on Cactus and Grapefruit League games each February and March for a big chunk of income. The mood for both groups is a little glum these days as the sport’s players’ union and owners continue to bicker over finances that threaten the start of spring training. UPCOMING: 850 words, photos by 4 p.m.
TEN-AUSTRALIAN-OPEN — It’s women’s semifinal day at Melbourne Park with two Americans featured. Madison Keys takes on top-ranked Ash Barty in the first night match and then Danielle Collins will play 2020 French Open champion Iga Swiatek. The winners will meet in a Saturday night championship match. UPCOMING: 700 words, photos by 8 p.m.
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The Canadian Press
