National Business

TORONTO — Credit rating agency Equifax Canada says average consumer debt increased 2.7 per cent to reach $72,950 at the end of 2019 as the pace of non-mortgage debt slowed.

FREDERICTON — When it comes to maple syrup production in Canada, Quebec dominates, but a claim by Ontario of being second has left a sour taste in the mouths of some producers in New Brunswick.

The Federal Court of Appeal has dismissed an attempt by airlines to suspend the country's new passenger rights charter until an appeal of the regulations is heard.

VIENNA — The OPEC oil cartel is calling for a deep production cut to keep crude prices from falling further as disruption to global business from the coronavirus slashes demand from air travel and industry.

TUCSON, Ariz. — When Oprah Winfrey chose the novel “American Dirt” for her book club, she imagined engaging in an impassioned television dialog about the narrative, which follows a Mexican mother and her son fleeing to the United States.

TORONTO — Shares of Cineplex Inc. fell more than 10 per cent after a short-seller suggested the company's $2.8-billion deal to be acquired by Cineworld PLC could fall apart or see the price reduced materially.

TORONTO — A pair of Canadian startups are looking to help make it easier to buy homes and cars using technology by speeding the mortgage approval process and by making finding and buying a new ride faster.

HONOLULU — A spate of cancelled events and falling visitor numbers from abroad indicate the economic impact Hawaii is experiencing due to the spread of the virus that causes the disease called COVID-19.

WASHINGTON — U.S. productivity rebounded in the final three months of last year but by a smaller amount than initially reported, while labour costs increased at a slower pace than first thought.

CALGARY — MEG Energy Corp. reported a profit of $26 million in its latest quarter compared with a loss of $199 million in the same quarter a year earlier. The company says the profit amounted to nine cents per diluted share for the quarter ended Dec.