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Zelensky Faces Stark Choices as Trump Pushes Peace Framework

Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner, U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, U.S. Army Secretary Daniel Driscoll sit before closed-door talks with Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine Andriy Yermak (not pictured). As pressure mounts in the ongoing war between Ukraine and Russia, U.S. President Donald Trump has intensified efforts to secure a peace deal , urging Kyiv to accept a revised framework before the American Thanksgiving holiday. The proposal, reportedly a 28-point plan , has drawn sharp criticism for heavily favoring Moscow’s interests, including demands that Ukraine cede territory, limit its military, and abandon aspirations to join NATO. In recent days, Trump warned that Ukraine risks losing access to U.S. intelligence and weapons if it fails to agree to the plan by November 27. His administration has framed the deadline as a necessary step to end the nearly four-year war, but many in Kyiv view it as coercive. Ukrainian President V...

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Canada's Economy Contracts Unpredictably: Central Bank's Cautionary Outlook


 Canada’s economy unexpectedly contracted in the second quarter of 2023 at an annualized rate of 0.2% . The growth was most likely flat in July. This result will probably allow the central bank to hold rates amid a possible recession . The second-quarter reading was far lower than the Bank of Canada’s (BoC’s) forecast for a 1.5% annualized GDP growth as well as the 1.2% gain expected by analysts . The quarterly slowdown was largely due to declines in housing investment and smaller inventory accumulation as well as slower international exports and household spending. In June, Canadian wildfires adversely impacted multiple industries, including mining and quarrying and rail transportation.

The figures “leave little doubt that the Bank of Canada will keep interest rates unchanged next week,” said Stephen Brown, deputy chief North American economist for Capital Economics. The central bank hiked its benchmark overnight rate to a 22-year-high of 5.0% in July, the tenth increase since March of last year. Since then, the bank has said its future moves would depend on its reading of the data, which have been mixed.

In conclusion, Canada’s economy has contracted unexpectedly in Q2 2023, and growth was most likely flat in July. This result will probably allow the central bank to hold rates amid a possible recession. The quarterly slowdown was largely due to declines in housing investment and smaller inventory accumulation as well as slower international exports and household spending. The Bank of Canada is expected to keep interest rates unchanged next week, given the recent economic data.

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