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Monday’s CPI Could Decide Your Next Mortgage Payment

  Canada lost 68,000 jobs in September. Inflation is sitting at 3%. The Bank of Canada has to decide on October 28 which of those facts matters more, and on Monday morning one more number lands to help it choose. If you carry a variable-rate mortgage, a HELOC or a renewal this winter, that number has a price tag. Two reports pulling in opposite directions The jobs data came first. Statistics Canada reported on October 9 that employment fell by 68,000 in September, pushing the unemployment rate to 6.5% from 6.4%. It followed a drop of about 42,000 in August, which means more than half of the 181,000 jobs gained between April and July have now been wiped out. Ontario shed 20,000 positions on its own. Markets reacted within hours: the odds of a quarter-point Bank of Canada hike on October 28 dropped to roughly 25% from about 40%, according to LSEG data reported by Reuters. Inflation is telling the opposite story. The consumer price index rose 3.0% year over year in August, matching Ju...

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Ceasefire Under Strain as Israeli Airstrikes Hit Rafah

 

                                        Gaza truce falters: Hamas attacks Israeli troops in Rafah; IDF launches airstrikes.


The Israeli military confirmed on Sunday that it carried out airstrikes in the Rafah area of southern Gaza, citing what it described as a “blatant violation” of the fragile ceasefire by Hamas. According to the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), militants fired an anti-tank missile and opened fire on Israeli troops operating near Rafah, prompting retaliatory strikes on what the military said were Hamas positions.

Witnesses in Gaza reported hearing multiple explosions and heavy gunfire in Rafah and nearby Khan Younis. Local health officials said casualties were being assessed, though initial reports indicated at least two deaths in northern Gaza from related strikes.

The escalation comes just days after a U.S.-brokered ceasefire took effect, raising hopes of easing tensions after months of violence. Both sides have since traded accusations of breaching the truce, with Hamas insisting it remains committed to the agreement and accusing Israel of undermining it.

The renewed hostilities highlight the fragility of the ceasefire and the challenges facing international mediators as they attempt to prevent a wider breakdown in Gaza.

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