El Nino weakening doesn't mean cooler temperatures this summer, forecasters say
As Canadians brace themselves for summer temperatures, forecasters say a weakening El Nino cycle doesn’t mean relief from the heat.
WeChat is suspending all new user registrations until early August, the popular social messaging app announced on Tuesday.
In a brief post on social media, WeChat, known as Weixin in China, said the suspension relates to an upgrade of security technology "according to relevant laws and regulations."
"In the meantime, the registration of new WeChat personal accounts and public accounts will be temporarily suspended," the app, which is owned by Chinese tech giant Tencent, added. New registrations will resume after the upgrade is completed, which is expected in early August, the company said.
Weixin is a daily necessity for hundreds of millions of people in China, who use the app to message friends, share photos, hail rides, pay for stuff, book restaurants, order food and a host of other services. Together, Weixin and WeChat, used by the Chinese diaspora including in the United States, have around 1.2 billion monthly active users.
It was not immediately clear which laws WeChat was referring to in its announcement, but the development comes amid a widening crackdown on technology and now education companies by Chinese regulators that has spooked investors. Tencent's stock in Hong Kong closed down nearly 9 per cent on Tuesday, its worst day in a decade.
Several tech companies, including e-commerce giant Alibaba, have faced investigations for alleged monopolistic behavior or breaches of customer rights, leading to record fines and massive overhauls. Chinese President Xi Jinping has endorsed the probes, calling on regulators to scrutinize tech companies as the country tightens data privacy and security policies.
The share prices of Chinese tech companies, including Alibaba, Tencent and food delivery platform Meituan have all taken a hammering this week. Meituan closed nearly 18 per cent lower in Hong Kong on Tuesday — eclipsing Monday's 14 per cent loss — after Chinese regulators issued new guidelines calling for improved standards for food delivery workers.
Earlier this month, China's Cyberspace Administration suspended the registration of new users from ride-hailing app Didi, torpedoing the company's stock just two days after its blockbuster New York IPO, which was the biggest U.S. share offering by a Chinese company since Alibaba debuted in 2014.
The regulator said it put the suspension in place to "prevent the expansion of risk" during a "cybersecurity review," but provided no details on why the probe was launched.
Days later, the internet watchdog proposed that any company with data on more than 1 million users must seek the agency's approval before listing its shares overseas. It also proposed that companies submit IPO materials to the agency for review ahead of listing.
The clampdown on private businesses could further dent foreign investors' confidence in China stocks, analysts at Nomura wrote in a research note on Monday. "Bruised and shaken investors are now likely to ponder which other areas could potentially become the next target of expanded state control," they said.
— Laura He, Michelle Toh and Sherisse Pham contributed reporting.
As Canadians brace themselves for summer temperatures, forecasters say a weakening El Nino cycle doesn’t mean relief from the heat.
A 15-year old boy who was critically injured after a stabbing in Nepean on Thursday has died of his injuries, Ottawa's English public school board said Sunday.
Police say it’s fortunate no one was injured or killed in a collision at North Vancouver’s Park and Tilford shopping centre Saturday evening that sent one vehicle careening into a flower shop and another into a set of concrete barriers outside a Winners store.
The Maple Leafs battled back from a 3-1 series deficit against the Boston Bruins with consecutive 2-1 victories - including one that required extra time - in their first-round playoff series to push the club's Original Six rival to the limit before suffering a devastating Game 7 overtime loss.
Amid scientists' warnings that nations need to transition away from fossil fuels to limit climate change, Canadians are still lukewarm on electric vehicles, according to a study conducted by Nanos Research for CTV News.
Three people have died and two have been hospitalized after a speeding car struck a tree and landed on another vehicle in Fredericton Sunday morning.
A Montreal man is warning Tesla drivers about using the Smart Summon feature after his vehicle hit another in a parking lot.
Madonna put on a free concert on Copacabana beach Saturday night, turning Rio de Janeiro's vast stretch of sand into an enormous dance floor teeming with a multitude of her fans.
Thieves killed two Australians and an American on a surfing trip to Mexico in order to steal their truck, particularly because they wanted the tires, authorities said Sunday.
Alberta Ballet's double-bill production of 'Der Wolf' and 'The Rite of Spring' marks not only its final show of the season, but the last production for twin sisters Alexandra and Jennifer Gibson.
A British Columbia mayor has been censured by city council – stripping him of his travel and lobbying budgets and removing him from city committees – for allegedly distributing a book that questions the history of Indigenous residential schools in Canada.
Three men in Quebec from the same family have fathered more than 600 children.
A group of SaskPower workers recently received special recognition at the legislature – for their efforts in repairing one of Saskatchewan's largest power plants after it was knocked offline for months following a serious flood last summer.
A police officer on Montreal's South Shore anonymously donated a kidney that wound up drastically changing the life of a schoolteacher living on dialysis.
Since 1932, Montreal's Henri Henri has been filled to the brim with every possible kind of hat, from newsboy caps to feathered fedoras.
Police in Oak Bay, B.C., had to close a stretch of road Sunday to help an elephant seal named Emerson get safely back into the water.
Out of more than 9,000 entries from over 2,000 breweries in 50 countries, a handful of B.C. brews landed on the podium at the World Beer Cup this week.
Raneem, 10, lives with a neurological condition and liver disease and needs Cholbam, a medication, for a longer and healthier life.