More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
Retail sales in Canada stumbled for the second month in a row after two straight months of gains, a sign of the rocky road ahead as Canada staggers out of the pandemic's economic recession.
The 2.1 per cent decline in retail sales in May came as many retailers continued to face closures amid the third wave of COVID-19, Statistics Canada said on Friday.
In a nod to the erratic economic situation, the federal agency provided an advance estimate for June retail sales, which it expects will climb 4.4 per cent as stores began to reopen.
“The decline in May sales numbers is not surprising given the ongoing shutdowns that were in place at the time, particularly in Ontario,” Retail Council of Canada spokeswoman Michelle Wasylyshen said in an email.
“The real test will be next month's numbers, which will show the effects of reopening.”
Sales decreased in eight of 11 subsectors in May, representing more than 65 per cent of the country's retail trade.
The biggest drop was recorded at building material and garden equipment and supplies dealers, which fell 11.3 per cent.
Sales in the clothing and clothing accessories category declined 11.2 per cent, with nearly a quarter shuttered for an average of six days during the month. Within the subsector, clothing stores saw an 11.6 per cent decrease in sales, falling to their lowest level since May 2020.
“Apparel sales have continued to languish throughout the pandemic and have been largely impacted by changes in consumer behaviour,” Wasylyshen with the retail council said. “We are hopeful that this sector will rebound in the months ahead as offices reopen and people return to work.”
Meanwhile, the motor vehicle and parts industry experienced a 2.4 per cent decrease in May.
Receipts rose 0.8 per cent at food and beverage stores and 0.9 per cent at businesses selling gasoline.
Statistics Canada said 5.6 per cent of retailers used to calculate its monthly numbers were closed at some point in May, compared with about 5 per cent the month before.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 23, 2021.
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
George Mallory is renowned for being one of the first British mountaineers to attempt to scale the dizzying heights of Mount Everest during the 1920s. Nearly a century later, newly digitized letters shed light on Mallory’s hopes and fears about ascending Everest.
A Sherwood Park family says their new house is uninhabitable. The McNaughton's say they were forced to leave the house after living there for only a week because contaminants inside made it difficult to breathe.
An emergency slide fell off a Delta Air Lines jetliner shortly after takeoff Friday from New York, and pilots who felt a vibration in the plane circled back to land safely at JFK Airport.
The B.C. NDP has asked the federal government to recriminalize public drug use, marking a major shift in the province's approach to addressing the deadly overdose crisis.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
A man has been handed a lengthy hunting ban and fined thousands of dollars for illegally killing a grizzly bear, B.C. conservation officers say.
An Ontario man who took out a loan to pay for auto repairs said his car was repossessed after he missed two payments.
Devastating tornadoes tore across parts of eastern Nebraska and northeast Texas Friday as a multi-day severe thunderstorm event ramped up in the central United States, injuring at least three people.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
A property tax bill is perplexing a small townhouse community in Fergus, Ont.
When identical twin sisters Kim and Michelle Krezonoski were invited to compete against some of the world’s most elite female runners at last week’s Boston Marathon, they were in disbelief.
The giant stone statues guarding the Lions Gate Bridge have been dressed in custom Vancouver Canucks jerseys as the NHL playoffs get underway.
A local Oilers fan is hoping to see his team cut through the postseason, so he can cut his hair.
A family from Laval, Que. is looking for answers... and their father's body. He died on vacation in Cuba and authorities sent someone else's body back to Canada.
A former educational assistant is calling attention to the rising violence in Alberta's classrooms.
The federal government says its plan to increase taxes on capital gains is aimed at wealthy Canadians to achieve “tax fairness.”
At 6'8" and 350 pounds, there is nothing typical about UBC offensive lineman Giovanni Manu, who was born in Tonga and went to high school in Pitt Meadows.