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5 Things to Know Today: Canada Enters Recession, Oil Slips on Iran Ceasefire Talk

Saturday, May 30, 2026 — Your quick-hit Canadian financial briefing for the day. 1.Canada Officially Meets the Definition of a Technical Recession Statistics Canada confirmed Friday that real GDP contracted 0.1% on an annualized basis in Q1 2026 — following a revised 1.0% drop in Q4 2025 . That's two straight quarters of negative growth, which meets the technical definition of a recession. The miss was a big one: economists had forecast growth of 1.5% . The main culprits were a surge in imports (up 2.9%, largely gold), declining business capital investment (down 0.7% — its fifth consecutive quarterly drop ), and weakness in resource extraction and construction. On a per-capita basis, GDP actually edged up 0.2% as Canada's population shrank for the second quarter in a row. Not everyone is ready to call it a full recession: some economists note that three of the four weak months were isolated, and early April data points to a sharp 0.4% rebound . Still, the numbers ...

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Tensions Escalate: Israel Strikes Lebanon Following Rocket Attacks

In a significant escalation of regional tensions, Israel launched airstrikes on southern Lebanon early Saturday in retaliation for rockets fired into northern Israel. The Israeli military reported intercepting three rockets targeting the town of Metula, marking the first such attack since a fragile ceasefire agreement was reached in November.

The Israeli government has held Lebanon accountable for the incident, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu instructing the military to act decisively against "dozens of terror targets" in Lebanon. The strikes reportedly targeted Hezbollah positions, though the group has denied involvement in the rocket launches, describing them as "primitive".

Lebanon's Prime Minister Nawaf Salam has urged the military to prevent further escalation, emphasizing the country's desire to avoid a return to war. Meanwhile, the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon expressed alarm over the violence, warning of the potential for serious regional consequences.

This exchange of fire underscores the fragility of the ceasefire and the ongoing challenges in maintaining stability along the Israel-Lebanon border. Both nations face mounting pressure to uphold their commitments under the truce, as the international community watches closely.

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