In this edition:
- Updated official plan for Niagara-on-the-Lake wins councillors’ approval
- Blueprint “Big IDEA” event highlights practical path to better retention, workplace culture, and inclusive business practices
- Fort Erie launches new electric vehicle (EV) charging stations
- Transit ridership stalls with ten consecutive months of year-over-year decline
- Prime Minister Carney announces new Advisory Committee on Canada-U.S. Economic Relations
- Home builders show new record low in multi-family market, near-record low in single-family homes
- Tim Cook stepping down as Apple CEO, handing reins to hardware leader John Ternus
- How the Iran war is affecting flight costs and availability
- Focus on Finance & Economy
Did you know you can get the GNCC’s Daily Update emailed to you? Click here to sign up.
Picture credit: Destination Ontario
Updated official plan for Niagara-on-the-Lake wins councillors’ approval
After nearly a decade of study and review, the final draft of a new official plan that will oversee growth in Niagara-on-the-Lake for the next 25 years has been approved by town councillors.
Picture credit: Anne Kalagian / Greater Niagara Chamber of Commerce
Blueprint “Big IDEA” event highlights practical path to better retention, workplace culture, and inclusive business practices
Today’s Big IDEA Blueprint session brought together employers, researchers, and industry leaders to examine a pressing challenge facing Niagara businesses in all industries and sectors: how to build stronger businesses by building stronger workplaces.
The session featured Dr. Thalia Semplonius, Co-Executive Director of Workforce Collective, whose work connects labour market data to the lived realities of workers and employers; Dr. Shawna Chen, Associate Professor of Entrepreneurship at Brock University, whose research explores barriers faced by overlooked and underestimated populations in the beverage industry and beyond; and special guest Matt Giffen, Founder of Bench Brewing Company, who shared practical insight into how values-driven businesses can embed IDEA principles into everyday operations.
Picture credit: Town of Fort Erie
Fort Erie launches new electric vehicle (EV) charging stations
The Town of Fort Erie celebrates Earth Day, April 22, 2026, by installing new electric vehicle (EV) charging stations at four public locations to support cleaner transportation and reduce emissions.
With funding from Aviva and Earth Day Canada through the Charged for Change program, the Town has added four double-headed charging stations, bringing the total to eight charging ports.
Picture credit: Frédéric Prochasson / Adobe Stock
Transit ridership stalls with ten consecutive months of year-over-year decline
Canada’s urban transit agencies provided an estimated 121.0 million passenger trips in February, down slightly (-0.8%; -1.0 million trips) from February 2025. This marked the 10th consecutive month of year-over-year decline.
On a monthly basis, with fewer calendar days in February, transit ridership typically dips from January. February 2026 saw a decline of 2.7%, or 3.4 million trips, from the previous month.
Photo credit: Oleksii / Adobe Stock
Prime Minister Carney announces new Advisory Committee on Canada-U.S. Economic Relations
Canada’s new government is forging a new economic and security relationship with the United States. Prime Minister Carney has secured the best deal of any major U.S. trading partner – 85% of our trade with the United States remains tariff-free, the lowest average tariff rate in the world. As Canada approaches the Joint Review of the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA), our aim is to preserve that unique Canadian advantage and to build on it.
To that end, the Prime Minister, Mark Carney, today announced the creation of the new Advisory Committee on Canada-U.S. Economic Relations. The committee will serve as a forum for expertise and strategy on all aspects of the Canada-U.S. economic relationship.
Photo credit: karamysh / Adobe Stock
Home builders show new record low in multi-family market, near-record low in single-family homes
The Canadian Home Builders’ Association (CHBA) released its Q1 2026 Housing Market Index (HMI) today, showing near record-low builder confidence in the single-family market and a new record low in the multi-family market—signalling fewer housing starts for homeownership ahead without focused policy action. Even regions like Atlantic Canada and the prairies that had been weathering the trade-war storm are now slowing, with dropping builder confidence from coast to coast.
Picture credit: Apple Inc.
Tim Cook stepping down as Apple CEO, handing reins to hardware leader John Ternus
Apple CEO Tim Cook is stepping down from the job that he inherited from the late Steve Jobs, ending a nearly 15-year reign that saw the company’s market value soar by more than $3.6 trillion US during an iPhone-fuelled era of prosperity.
Photo credit: Imaging L / Adobe Stock
How the Iran war is affecting flight costs and availability
The head of the International Energy Agency has warned that European countries could run low on jet fuel within weeks, forcing the continent’s airlines and carriers that fly to Europe to significantly reduce flights. Many airlines have already raised checked bag fees or added fuel surcharges as the global price of jet fuel increased from about $99 per barrel at the end of February to as high as $209 a barrel at the beginning of April.
Focus on Finance & Economy
Businesses are courageously tackling an uncertain future
Candace Laing, iPolitics
Through the Daily Updates, the GNCC aims to deliver important business news in a timely manner. We disseminate all news and information we feel will be important to businesses. Inclusion in the Daily Update is not an endorsement by the GNCC.
