National Business

CALGARY — Suncor Energy Inc. is reducing the size of its contractor work force by 20 per cent as part of its effort to improve safety and performance at its oilsands operations.

Lightspeed Commerce Inc.’s chief financial officer says reduced consumer spending has the software company being “cautious” ahead of the typically busy holiday season.

NEW YORK (AP) — If you went missing, how much press would you be “worth”? The Columbia Journalism Review unveiled a tool on Thursday that calculates the number of stories your disappearance would net, based on demographics.

OTTAWA — Canada's merchandise trade surplus was $1.1 billion in September as growth in exports, boosted by wheat and crude oil, outpaced a rise in imports, Statistics Canada said Thursday.

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — The U.N.'s nuclear agency said Thursday that its inspectors found no evidence to support Russia's claim that Ukraine planned to build and detonate a radioactive “dirty bomb” with the intent of blaming it on Moscow.

MONTREAL — Gildan Activewear Inc. says it earned US$153 million or 84 cents per diluted share in its third quarter, down 18.7 per cent from the same time last year. The Montreal-based clothing maker, which reports in U.S.

MONTREAL — BCE Inc. reported its third-quarter profit edged lower compared with a year ago as its revenue rose, helped by growth in its wireless and home internet operations. The company's wireless business saw its operating revenue gain 7.

DETROIT (AP) — Stellantis is warning owners of 276,000 older vehicles to stop driving them after Takata driver's air bags apparently exploded, killing three more people.

TORONTO — H&M will soon test a fee for returns in Europe. Uniqlo Canada already charges one for online returns. So does Miniso's Canadian outposts, which treat most purchases as final sale. Shoppers, it's not your imagination.

TORONTO — The sales slump in the Greater Toronto Area deepened last month with half the number of transactions compared with a year earlier and new listings dropping to a level not seen in more than a decade, the Toronto Regional Real Estate Board sa