At the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, with his job as a delivery driver bringing plenty of overtime and the cost to borrow at record lows, James Kebe went on a spending spree. He leased a boat and an all-terrain vehicle, and when his bank offered him a bigger line of credit, he maxed it out. Then interest rates started rising at their fastest pace in generations. And because Kebe’s line of credit had a floating rate, his monthly payments soared, too.

Retail giant Nordstrom will exit the Canadian market, shutting down its 13 stores in the country amid stagnant sales, the company said. The move will cut approximately 2,500 jobs, the Washington Post reported. Nordstrom’s decision makes it the second major American retailer to wind down operations in Canada this year. Bed Bath & Beyond, which has come close to filing for bankruptcy in the United States, had in February cited insolvency to close its Canada stores, according to court documents. Court filings by Nordstrom in Canada reveal a dismal picture.

Canadian manufacturing activity expanded at a faster pace in February as measures of output and new orders both rose to nine-month highs, while inflation pressures continued to ease, data showed on Wednesday, Reuters reported. The S&P Global Canada Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) rose to a seasonally adjusted 52.4 in February from 51.0 in January, posting its highest level since July. Before January's reading, the index had been below the 50 threshold that separates growth from contraction for five consecutive months.

The Canadian economy unexpectedly stalled in the final three months of 2022, but likely rebounded in January, data showed on Tuesday, a result that backs up the Bank of Canada's aim to keep interest rates on hold at its next policy meeting in March, Reuters reported. Annualized fourth-quarter gross domestic product (GDP) was flat versus the previous quarter, Statistics Canada said, ending a streak of five consecutive quarterly increases. It was far below analysts' median forecast for a 1.5% increase.

Toronto-Dominion Bank said Monday it agreed to pay more than $1.2 billion to settle a lawsuit by investors claiming it aided R. Allen Stanford’s $7 billion Ponzi scheme more than a decade ago, Bloomberg News reported. Settlements also were reached with HSBC Holdings Plc, which will pay another $40 million, and Independent Bank Group Inc., formerly known as Bank of Houston, which will pay $100 million, according to Ralph Janvey, the court-appointed receiver for Stanford International Bank.

Canadian inflation pressures eased in January, leaving the Bank of Canada some room to hold interest rates at current levels next month even after a blockbuster jobs report, Bloomberg News reported. The consumer price index rose 5.9% from a year ago, Statistics Canada reported Tuesday in Ottawa, slower than the 6.1% gain expected in a Bloomberg survey of economists and down from 6.3% in December. On a monthly basis, the index rose 0.5% in January, versus expectations of 0.7%.

Bed Bath & Beyond Inc.’s Canadian division will shut down its stores under court protection after the company received an unusual lifeline earlier this week to save its U.S. operations from bankruptcy, WSJ Pro Bankruptcy reported. The troubled home-goods retailer on Friday filed its Canadian division for protection under the Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act, Canada’s rough equivalent of chapter 11 bankruptcy.

In what could be the first sign of the start of a new phase of the turbulent period in Metro Vancouver’s housing market, Coromandel Properties is insolvent, based on its new filing in the Supreme Court of British Columbia seeking protections, Daily Hive Urbanized reported. The major local real estate developer, which primarily pursues condominium projects, said that it is looking to reposition itself through the stream of the Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act (CCAA).

The Bank of Canada wants to reinvigorate its interest-rate setting process, bringing an outside voice to the table next month amid a broader effort to bolster its credibility, Bloomberg News reported. HEC Montréal economics professor Nicolas Vincent will become the first “non-executive” member of the central bank’s six-person governing council ahead of its March 8 decision. He is set to serve as part-time deputy governor for two years, with an option for a third, instead of the longer, full-time terms typically given to policymakers.

Governor Tiff Macklem said that the Bank of Canada needs to keep interest rates steady to avoid slowing the economy too much, defending his decision to pause hikes in remarks that were accidentally leaked, Bloomberg News reported. In his first speech since declaring a conditional pause on rate increases, Macklem said it can take 18 to 24 months to see the full effects of higher borrowing costs. Policymakers, he added, want to avoid overtightening. The central bank’s benchmark rate has risen from 0.25% to 4.5% since March. The two-year yield was at 3.975% as of 12:19 p.m.