Bester News

(CEP News) Ottawa - Buying a house can be enough to cause night sweats and jangled nerves at the best of times. For most people, it's the single largest purchase they will ever make and paying for it can take two or three decades. But the thought of buying a home in the midst of the current financial crisis seems to have been enough to scare some people right out of the market.

(CEP News) Ottawa - New rules governing Registered Education Savings Plans (RESPs) could help parents accumulate even more money for their children's education, but there's another new tax-sheltered investment they might want to look at first the Tax Free Savings Account (TFSA), says one wealth expert.

(CEP News) - While Canadian retailers are hoping for a positive holiday shopping season despite the current economic turmoil, some strategists are saying that it could be worse than expected and the start of a new trend as consumers change their spending habits.

(CEP News) - The current economic downturn will have little effect on Quebec shoppers, who will spend about the same during this holiday season as they did in 2007, a study conducted by the Retail Council of Quebec (RCQ) revealed.

(CEP News) Ottawa - Canadian investors are looking for stability, according to a recent poll commissioned by Manulife Financial. But while bonds and cash equivalents have gained in popularity, financial advisers say some so-called cash investments are riskier than others.

(CEP News) Ottawa - With a little more than seven weeks until Christmas, Canadian retailers are anxiously watching the front doors of their stores to see whether customers will be coming in on a holiday spending binge or cautiously hanging on to their wallets as they worry about what the financial future holds.

(CEP News) Ottawa - Canada's tourism industry, already reeling from a few difficult years, faces more turmoil ahead, says a senior industry official.

(CEP News) Ottawa - Canadians rediscovered their taste for dining out in August, with total sales in restaurants and bars up 0.8% from July to nearly $4 billion, Statistics Canada reported Friday.

(CEP News) - Canadian pensions tumbled nearly 9% in October, house prices have fallen 6% since last year, and consumer confidence is ebbing at new lows. All this is terrible news - that is, if you're retiring, selling a house, or your customer base is receding. But for market neophytes earning steady income and moving up in the world, the timing couldn't be better to start investing.

(CEP News) Ottawa - Canadian homeowners thinking of cutting their electricity bills by taking their homes "off the grid" would be best advised to consider reducing their power consumption first, two alternative energy business owners say.