Shares in Shenzhen pop as Chinese economic activity sees unexpected bounce - CNBC

Stocks in Shenzhen surged on Thursday after a series of data released on Sunday and Monday showed Chinese economic activity improved unexpectedly in March.

By the market close, the Shenzhen component jumped around 3.64 percent to 10,267.70 and the Shenzhen composite soared 3.571 percent to 1,755.67.

Meanwhile, the CSI 300, which tracks the largest stocks listed on the mainland, advanced 2.62 percent to 3,973.93.

Those moves came after both the private Caixin/Markit Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index and the official Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) for March expanded unexpectedly, surprising analysts.

The Caixin/Markit Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) came in at 50.8 for March. Analysts had expected it to come in at 49.9 for a second month, according to a Reuters poll of economists. A reading below 50 signals contraction, while a reading above that level indicates expansion.

That came on the back of Sunday's release of the official PMI in China, which rose to 50.5 in March from February's three-year low of 49.2. It marked the first expansion in four months, according to data released by China's National Bureau of Statistics.

"Our view is the impact of policy easing is gradually kicking in, pushing up sequential growth indicators such as PMI first," economists from Bank of America-Merrill Lynch said in a note.

In particular, they said, the "larger-than-expected tax/fee cuts and improving financial conditions" likely provided a boost to business sentiment in the country's manufacturing space. Furthermore, demand for industrial restocking could also have risen as commodity and raw material prices experienced a rebound.

"I think this is indeed a good number," Tan Min Lan, head of the Asia Pacific chief investment office at UBS Wealth Management, told CNBC's "Street Signs" on Monday.

"It is a critical number because (I) recall that a couple of weeks back one of the key concern(s) of the market is that when factories shut during the Chinese New Year period, they may not (reopen) if orders do not materialize," she said.

"I think this set of data, it's critical, it's important because it suggests that production did not fall over the cliff and that the fears over industrial deflation and the fears over an unemployment surge may have been overplayed," Tan added.

The manufacturing numbers come amid ongoing tariff talks between the U.S. and China aimed at resolving their trade differences. High-level trade negotiations between the two economic powerhouses are set to resume in Washington this week following last week's talks in Beijing.

— Reuters and CNBC's Huileng Tan contributed to this report.

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2019-04-01 05:46:25Z
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Jeff Bezos investigator: Saudi Arabia obtained private information - CNN

"Our investigators and several experts concluded with high confidence that the Saudis had access to Bezos' phone, and gained private information," Gavin de Becker wrote in an opinion article for the Daily Beast that was published Saturday. He did not offer concrete evidence supporting his allegations against the Saudi government. De Becker said that his findings have been turned over to federal officials and that he won't share details of the investigation out of respect to those officials, adding "I intend today's writing to be my last public statement on the matter."

He added that it is not clear whether the National Enquirer's parent company American Media Inc., or AMI, "was aware of the details."

AMI responded to de Becker's allegation in a statement to CNN Business on Sunday saying that it relied on one source, Sanchez's brother, Michael Sanchez, for its story.

"Despite the false and unsubstantiated claims of Mr. de Becker, American Media has, and continues to, refute the unsubstantiated claims that the materials for our report were acquired with the help of anyone other than the single source who first brought them to us ... there was no involvement by any other third party whatsoever."

Saudi Arabia denies any relationship to the Bezos story, according to de Becker. Saudi Arabian officials and de Becker did not respond to CNN's requests for comment regarding the op-ed over the weekend.

De Becker's article raises the stakes surrounding the National Enquirer's tabloid exposé of a romantic relationship between the billionaire Amazon CEO and Sanchez, a former anchor for Fox's local station in Los Angeles. Bezos has implied that AMI tried to extort him to please the Saudi government — which allegedly has links to AMI and is upset with Bezos-owned Washington Post's coverage of murdered columnist Jamal Khashoggi —or President Donald Trump. AMI says that's not the case.

In the Daily Beast, de Becker wrote that he and his team spoke with current and former AMI executives and sources, Middle East intelligence experts, Saudi whistleblowers and dissidents, as well as current and former advisers to President Trump, among others, before reaching the conclusion.

The National Enquirer tried to "strong-arm an American citizen whom[Saudi Arabia's] country's leadership wanted harmed, compromised, and silenced," according to de Becker.

Both Bezos and the Washington Post have been criticized repeatedly by the president, who has his own links to American Media.

AMI chairman David Pecker is a longtime friend of Trump's, and the Enquirer was one of Trump's most reliable and enthusiastic media boosters during the campaign. The publisher has admitted to making a payment of $150,000 in cooperation with members of Trump's presidential campaign to prevent former Playboy model Karen McDougal's claims of an affair with Trump from being made public during the 2016 race. Trump denied the affair.

Federal prosecutors ultimately struck a non-prosecution agreement with the publisher, effectively ruling out charges for AMI over its role in securing hush money from Trump's personal lawyer Michael Cohen.

De Becker believes that the texts and photographs sent from Bezos and Lauren Sanchez were shared with the National Enquirer by Michael Sanchez.

But de Becker claims that the National Enquirer knew about the messages before approaching Sanchez. Sanchez told CNN Business that AMI was already pursuing a story about the relationship when it came to him. He added that "de Becker's latest smoke-and-mirrors distraction " contained "zero evidence."

In its statement, AMI said that "the fact of the matter is, it was Michael Sanchez who tipped the National Enquirer off to the affair on Sept. 10, 2018, and over the course of four months provided all of the materials for our investigation." The spokesperson added that Sanchez's "continued efforts to discuss and falsely represent our reporting, and his role in it, has waived any source confidentiality."

De Becker argues that the first source is the Saudi Arabian government. He said that the Saudi leadership wanted to harm Bezos because of the Washington Post's coverage of Khashoggi's death. Khashoggi, who had been critical of Saudi Arabia and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman, was killed and dismembered in the Saudi Arabian consulate in Istanbul in the fall.

The Saudis have presented shifting stories about Khashoggi's fate, initially denying any knowledge before arguing that a group of rogue operators, many of whom belong to bin Salman's inner circle, were responsible for the journalist's death. Riyadh has maintained that neither bin Salman nor King Salman knew of the operation to target Khashoggi. US officials, however, have said such a mission — including 15 men sent from Riyadh — could not have been carried out without the authorization of bin Salman.

The Washington Post has been closely covering the incident, and Bezos was the target of a pro-Saudi campaign wielded by Saudi social media users and a Saudi journalist in the wake of Khashoggi's death that called for a boycott against Amazon and Souq, an e-commerce site owned by Amazon.

Bezos himself called attention to the connection between AMI and Saudi Arabia in an explosive blog post he published to Medium in February accusing AMI of trying to blackmail him with proof of the affair.

In the post, Bezos noted that AMI has been investigated "for various actions they've taken on behalf of the Saudi Government."

He pointed to an Associated Press story about AMI's publication of a glossy magazine celebrating Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's visit to the United States in April 2018. AMI denied that Saudis had directed the magazine's production or paid for it, but the AP reported that three weeks before the prince's arrival, the media company sent a copy to the Saudi embassy, where it circulated among officials who then shared it with Washington foreign policy contacts. AMI said it didn't share an advance copy of the report with the Saudis, AP said in their story.

De Becker also referred to the story as evidence of a connection between AMI and the Saudi government.

Saudi Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Adel al-Jubeir has in the past denied any connection between his country and AMI to CNN.

-— CNN's Brian Stelter, Oliver Darcy, Tom Kludt, Nicole Gaouette, Nada Altaher, Chandler Thornton and Sheena McKenzie contributed to this report.

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2019-04-01 01:26:00Z
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Ontario, Manitoba, N.B. and Saskatchewan may see spike in pump prices Monday as climate-change levy takes effect - The Globe and Mail

First legal pot shop in Toronto ready to open its doors Monday morning - CP24 Toronto's Breaking News

Kayla Goodfield, CP24.com
Published Sunday, March 31, 2019 5:06PM EDT
Last Updated Sunday, March 31, 2019 7:40PM EDT

The first legal pot shop in Toronto is ready to open its doors Monday morning.

Speaking inside the four-level retail store located at 202 Queen Street West, the communications officer for The Hunny Pot Cannabis Co. told CP24 that their team is “really excited for people to see the space.”

“Our focus from the very beginning was to open on April 1 at 9 a.m. and we never wavered from that,” Cameron Brown said. “We knew that we wanted to be open to make that first sale and the fact that we are the first Toronto retailer to be open and to make that first sale in the biggest market in Canada, I can’t express how excited we are about that.”

Although the process to set up shop was very quick, Brown said their 50-person team is ready to serve.

“We have a ton of education with the budtenders on the product side but also the story behind every little piece that we put into here so we are really excited for the customers to see it,” he said. “We went very heavy on staff because it’s very important that people coming through the door get the full Hunny Pot experience. They’ve (the staff) have been in training all week on the products, training on the process and making sure that we have everything down to be able to flow if we have two people here tomorrow or 10,000 people.”

The Hunny Pot Cannabis Co. is one of ten legal pot shops in the province expected to open Monday morning after being granted a retail licence from the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO) earlier this month.

On Monday, three shops are expected to open in Ottawa, two in Kingston and one in Brampton, St. Catharines, London and Burlington respectively, according to the AGCO.

“Although the AGCO has authorized these stores to open on April 1, the operators will determine their own opening day and operating hours as permitted in the regulation,” the AGCO said on its website on Sunday.

The retail cannabis licences were granted after the provincial government announced the first 25 companies that were able to apply for a licence on Jan. 11. More than 17,000 expressions of interest to receive a licence were accepted prior to the decisions, according to the AGCO.

The licences were divided by region, with five in the east of the province, seven in the west, two in the north, six in the Greater Toronto Area and five in Toronto.

Those who were granted a licence but neglect to open on time can face a fine from the provincial government.

A lineup was started by cannabis lawyer Caryma Sa’d and her assistant Marie Kamara outside of The Hunny Pot Cannabis Co. on Sunday afternoon.

“It’s a historic moment,” she said.

Sa’d said the process set up by the provincial government regarding the opening of legal cannabis shops in Ontario has been “disappointing.”

“It is disappointing but perhaps not surprising given how the government decided to roll out. Initially we had thoughts of privatization, open for business and that was replaced with a lottery that had zero merit criteria so it’s not surprising that only a handful of stores in the province were able to be ready on time.”

Recreational marijuana has been available to Ontarians legally through online purchase on the Ontario Cannabis Store website since October 17.

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April 01, 2019 at 04:06AM

$100,000 Winnipeg Lotto 649 Winner - Manitoba Post

WINNIPEG - There was no winner for Saturday night's $7 million Lotto 649 Draw. The draw for next Wednesday, April 3 is an estimated $10 million.

There was however, a Winnipeg ticket holder who won $100,000 with the EXTRA.

Here are the winning numbers from Saturday March 30, 2019.

In the event of any discrepancy between this information and the official information of the Western Canadian Lottery Corporation, the latter shall prevail.

- PHOTO OF WINNING NUMBERS - WCLC.COM

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March 31, 2019 at 06:32PM

Lyft Adds More EVs & Driver Perks - CleanTechnica

Cars

Published on March 29th, 2019 | by Jennifer Sensiba

March 29th, 2019 by Jennifer Sensiba 

---

After recently going public, Lyft is trying to attract more drivers and maybe take some of Uber’s best with some new perks. By offering no-fee bank accounts with automatic deposits, and cheaper repairs, they hope to sweeten the deal without increasing driver pay. They’re also increasing the number of hybrid and electric vehicles available for driver rentals.

Photo by Lyft

For those not following the rideshare market, it’s been a wild ride the last few years. A price war between Lyft and Uber drove passenger pay lower and lower, and with it, driver pay. The services promised lower pollution and congestion, but studies are showing the opposite happening. It even got so bad in New York that they capped the number of permits available in the city for rideshare drivers, and other cities are considering doing the same. All the while, many drivers work for both Uber and Lyft, and the services want as many drivers as possible to prevent charging “surge” or “primetime” rates and to shorten wait times for passengers.

But the big challenge is that they can’t do this by increasing driver pay, or they risk being undercut by the competition. In a recent email to Lyft drivers, they announced several changes to try to help drivers earn more money and reduce the environmental impact.

“As we become a public company, we’d like to thank our drivers for every mile, minute, and conversation you’ve given so far.” they said. “Just days ago, we announced the launch of Lyft Driver Services, designed to save you money and make driving easier. Now, we’re more equipped and accountable than ever to support drivers like you.”

The email directs drivers to their new “Why Drive With Lyft?” page. They first go over the new Lyft Direct Debit Card. If drivers sign up for one, they get instant deposits to the account after every ride without the usual $0.50 fee. They also get no ATM fees for withdrawals, and some cashback rewards.

Photo by Lyft

They’re also rolling out “driver centers,” where drivers can get reduced cost repairs and maintenance for their vehicles. For those outside of an area with a center, mobile repair services will soon be available in several cities, with more to come later this year. The idea is to both provide cheaper repairs and less time without the car out of service.

They also announced that they’re ordering more vehicles to expand the Express Drive program to more cities. To start, they ordered over 6,000 new vehicles, with most of them being hybrid or electric vehicles. This probably is mostly meant as a perk for drivers to keep gas costs down, but is probably also meant to help reduce the environmental impact of the service in cities.

Finally, they announced increased Driver Advisory Councils to get more feedback from drivers and announced that people using GEICO rideshare insurance will get higher pay on every ride.

While I’m sure most drivers would like to just see higher pay, these moves seem to be designed to help drivers reduce their expenses and take home more pay at the end of the month. While we watch to see how this goes, be sure to TIP YOUR DRIVERS if you use these services and your driver did a reasonably good job. These days, the driver usually gets less than half of the money you are paying for a ride. Just a few bucks from each passenger can make a big difference at the end of the day. 
 

 

Tags: GEICO, Lyft, ridesharing, Uber

About the Author

Jennifer Sensiba Jennifer Sensiba is a long time efficient vehicle enthusiast, writer, and photographer. She grew up around a transmission shop, and has been experimenting with vehicle efficiency since she was 16 and drove a Pontiac Fiero. She likes to explore the Southwest US with her partner, kids, and animals.

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March 30, 2019 at 09:40AM

'I don't know what I'm going to do': FCA employees at a loss for how to move on - CBC.ca

Two Windsor sisters can expect to lose their job at Windsor Assembly Plant on Sept. 30, 2019 — when Fiat Chrysler Automotive terminates the third shift at the plant.

They are two of roughly 1,500 jobs that will be lost as a result.

Brenda and Holly Lucier both work on the assembly line.

"I was devastated," said Brenda — her sister Holly is the one who called to give her the news.

"Everything I worked for ... ripped [away] in that five-minute call. I didn't know what I was going to do."

Brenda Lucier, centre, and Holly Lucier talk about what it was like finding out they might lose their job in September. 2:29

Holly thought it was a joke — and then she knew it was a nightmare.

"I've only been there a year," said Holly. "I've only been there a year. I don't know what to think."

She had left a previous role to go work at WAP, after she bettered herself, she said.

Holly bought a new car just a few weeks ago. When she called the dealership Friday morning to see if she could give it back, she wasn't their first call that morning.

Holly said it's not just them — it's all the feeder plants too. She said eliminating a whole shift has huge repercussions. 

WATCH Rod Drouillard say it's been a shock:

Rod Drouillard has worked on the midnight shift for a long time. What happens next for him? 0:24

Rod Drouillard has been on steady midnights for 30 years. He's probably headed to the swing shift now.

"I feel bad for the low seniority guys," said Drouillard. "I'll still have a job at the end of the day. It's tough for the economy in Windsor."

Drouillard said the floor was quiet on his shift Thursday night.

"But you can't lose sleep over something you can't control," said Drouillard. "It is what it is. It's a business decision, they're in it to make money."

WATCH DinoGatto says he'll be okay, but the new hires are at a risk:

Day shift employee Dino Gatto says the shift cancellation will affect those who haven't been with FCA very long. 0:21

Dino Gatto on the day shift said as a plant, they're in shock.

"It's a big blow," said Gatto. "We've been running the third shift since 1993. It's been a great opportunity."

Gatto said it's the 2,000 people who were hired in the last few years who will hurt the most — he's been on the line for 23 years, so he'll be okay ... for now.

"Is it going to stabilize? Is it going to continue to get worse? Time will tell," he said. 

Hope may come with a new product

According to Drouillard, the company just can't sustain three shifts, five days a week.

How did the third shift get here? 0:40

The plant will be shutdown during the summer for retooling. Gatto said he's heard it may be for an all-wheel platform product.

Even though some people are still hopeful another product will come in, Drouillard said "once we go down to two shifts it may be hard to get it back."

Gatto said some of the employees saw it coming, looking at the shutdowns over the last year. 

"There's still some hope," said Gatto.

"We're really uncertain what the future holds, even tomorrow. If there are some layoffs, maybe they'll get called back within the year. We don't know."

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March 30, 2019 at 05:00PM