Treasury bonds rose as anxiety over whether the Federal Reserve will cut back on bond purchases eased somewhat ahead of a key speech from Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke.

TORONTO -- A new report suggests nearly half of Canadian homeowners intend to buy a property in the next five years, despite a cooling off in the housing market.

Almost a third of Canadian households report never or almost never having any money left to save after paying their bills, according to a new study issued Wednesday.

Retail sales stayed flat at $39.5 billion in March, as sales increased in volume terms despite lower prices for gasoline. Statistics Canada said in volume terms, retail sales were up 0.7 per cent.

Zoocasa, an online service for home seekers, is aiming to win market share with rebates to buyers and sellers that will refund roughly 15 per cent of the commission they pay their real estate agents.

Wed May 22, 2013 8:36am EDT. * First-quarter loss C$0.31/shr vs profit C$0.91/share last yr. * Revenue falls 6.6 pct, same-store sales dip 2.6 pct.

Target Corp. posted a 29% drop in quarterly earnings and lowered its outlook, citing weak sales in seasonal and weather-related categories.

The Canadian Association of Accredited Mortgage Professionals is warning that new-home construction will drop dramatically within the next two years, resulting in a loss of about 80,000 construction and related jobs by mid-2015.

The Canadian Boreal Forest agreement, CBFA, took yet another bizarre turn on Tuesday when one of its largest corporate signatories, Montreal-based Resolute Forest Products, withdrew, citing �unbalanced� demands from environmental NGOs.

An apple orchard in Nova Scotia's Annapolis Valley has been quarantined after a critical plant pest was discovered for the first time in North America.