Business
COVID response closed more Canadian businesses than 2008 financial crisis: gov’t report
From LifeSiteNews
StatsCan revealed that they are witnessing an increase in ‘zombie businesses,’ a phenomenon which occurs when owners never file for bankruptcy but simply walk away from their business.
Statistics Canada has revealed that more businesses closed as a result of the COVID-induced economic downturn than the 2008 financial crisis.
On October 25, Statistics Canada reported that the COVID-19 “pandemic” caused a record number of small businesses to shut down, with many owners never filing for bankruptcy but instead simply walking away from their companies, resulting in a large uptick in a phenomenon called “zombie businesses,” according to information obtained by Blacklock’s Reporter.
“This finding represents a larger increase than observed during the 2008 financial crisis when the exit rate increased by one percentage point,” wrote analysts.
The 2007- 2008 financial crisis, also called the Global Financial Crisis, is considered the most severe worldwide economic crisis since the Great Depression of 1929.
Business exits refer to the permanent closure of a business and can occur without a formal process, meaning owners can walk away from their businesses without declaring bankruptcy.
According to StatsCan, exits increased at the same time as bankruptcies fell, which is partly because courts were closed due to COVID lockdowns.
However, analysts noted that exits did not appear in bankruptcy court statistics, adding, “Formal insolvencies are not the whole story. Formal insolvency is but one path a business in distress may take.”
“The COVID-19 pandemic had a substantial impact on business dynamics leading to the temporary or permanent closure of many businesses,” analysts continued.
According to a Department of Industry estimate, Canada had 1,198,632 small businesses before COVID lockdowns. While the number has been revealed to have decreased drastically since then, federal agencies have failed to record comprehensive figures on the economic impact of COVID lockdowns and regulations.
“In my view there are hundreds of thousands of zombie businesses, businesses that are essentially dead but haven’t finalized the closure process altogether,” Dan Kelly, CEO of the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, testified at 2020 hearings of the Senate national finance committee. “We are seeing greater numbers of business failures that actually haven’t been reported. We’re only at the tip of the iceberg.”
According to a 2022 Bank of Canada survey, only an estimated half of businesses reopened after being closed by COVID lockdowns. The research tracked 12,976 businesses throughout Vancouver, Toronto and Ottawa including bars, restaurants, shops, nightclubs and motels, which were locked down by COVID regulations in April and May 2021.
“Half of businesses recorded as temporarily closed in May had reopened by the end of September,” the Bank reported. “Forty percent were still hibernating. Ten percent were closed for good.”
Statistics Canada’s report comes as Liberals MPs recently opted for a closed-door review by Minister of Health advisers of how the Canadian government handled the COVID-19 “pandemic” instead of launching a public inquiry.
In recent months, numerous reports have emerged revealing the Trudeau government’s mismanagement during the COVID-19 “pandemic.”
In a 2021 report Pandemic Preparedness, the Auditor General revealed that the cabinet was “not adequately prepared.”
Furthermore, Lessons Learned From The Public Health Agency Of Canada’s COVID-19 Response, an internal audit, condemned managers for “confusion,” “limited public health expertise” and “no clear understanding” of how to compile critical data.
Additionally, former Finance Minister Bill Morneau declared that spending programs to tackle COVID were prolonged and led to inflation under Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s leadership.
During the so-called COVID-19 pandemic, the Trudeau government issued billions to Canadians who claimed they needed Canadian Emergency Response Benefits (CERB) as they were not permitted to work under COVID regulations.
Recently, the Canadian Revenue Agency (CRA) has worked to take back the $3.2 billion from Canadians who filed for and were given CERB despite not being eligible to receive it. However, many are fighting in court to keep their government payments.
Business
The ESG Collapse: Al Gore, Intel, BlackRock, and the Failed Promise of “Sustainable” Investing
From StosselTV
For years, investment firms pressured companies to hire people of certain races and genders, and pushed “sustainability.” That has hurt returns.
Investments that claim to be “sustainable” have been underperforming. It’s because companies that embrace “ESG” woke investing end up prioritizing politics over innovation.
Intel, once a leader in the tech world, wasted millions on ESG goals. Now, it lags behind its competitors. Its stock is down more than 70%. “You have a company that’s absolutely failing!” Says Matt Cole, CEO of Strive investment managing.
Even BlackRock, which led the “ESG” push, now backs away from ESG investments. “What you’re seeing today,” says Cole, “is ESG funds shuttering at record speed.”
Our new video explains why.
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Business
GOP Lawmakers Urge Coast Guard To Defend US Ports Where ‘Chinese Military Company’ Operates
From the Daily Caller News Foundation
By Philip Lenczycki
Republican lawmakers urged the U.S. Coast Guard on Wednesday to take “decisive action” against a Chinese military company that has “expansive operations at major U.S. ports,” according to a letter exclusively obtained by the Daily Caller News Foundation.
The House Committee on Homeland Security and House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party sent a letter to U.S. Coast Guard Acting Commandant, Admiral Kevin E. Lunday requesting information and a classified briefing related to COSCO Shipping, a Chinese state-owned enterprise that the Department of Defense (DOD) recently added to its list of “Chinese Military Companies.” COSCO Shipping poses a “significant” national security threat to the U.S., ranging from “espionage, cyber intrusions, sabotage, and supply chain disruptions,” according to the letter.
“Permitting vessels and personnel affiliated with COSCO SHIPPING to operate within U.S. ports without adequate safeguards exposes the nation to unacceptable risks, particularly during times of increased geopolitical tension,” the letter states. “As the lead federal agency for maritime security, the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) must take decisive action to mitigate these risks.”
The letter is signed by House Homeland Security chairman, Tennessee Rep. Mark Green, China Select Committee chairman, Michigan Rep. John Moolenaar, Florida Rep. Carlos Gimenez and South Dakota Rep. Dusty Johnson.
The People’s Republic of China (PRC) exploits “Chinese Military Companies” for intelligence and military purposes as part of its “Military-Civil Fusion Strategy,” the letter states.
Military-Civil Fusion “supports the modernization goals of the People’s Liberation Army by ensuring it can acquire advanced technologies and expertise developed by PRC companies, universities, and research programs that appear to be civilian entities,” according to the DOD.
Toward that end, China engages in “forced technology transfer, intelligence gathering, and outright theft,” and directs Chinese enterprises to “undertake classified military R&D and weapons production,” according to the State Department.
In addition to being a state-owned enterprise, the committee’s letter warns that COSCO Shipping vessels “frequently have Chinese Communist Party (CCP) political commissars embedded amongst their crews.”
COSCO Shipping’s website includes a section for “Party building” and states that its CEO, Wan Min, also serves as the Party secretary of the firm’s internal CCP branch. A “Party branch” is the smallest “grass-roots” CCP organization, and one must be established within any Chinese institutions containing three or more Party members, according to the Chinese government.
The committee’s letter also urges the USCG to intensify its protocols for “screening vessels, owners, and crew members associated with COSCO Shipping and other entities linked to the PLA or the PRC’s security and intelligence services.”
COSCO Shipping’s previous CEO, Xu Lirong, simultaneously served as deputy director of the China International Culture Exchange Center (CICEC), which former analyst at the Australian Strategic Policy Institute Alex Joske identified as a front for China’s premier civilian intelligence service, the Ministry of State Security, the DCNF previously reported.
“It is essential that biographical information for all foreign mariners, particularly those from the PRC and other high-risk countries, undergo comprehensive scrutiny utilizing the complete range of classified and unclassified data resources accessible to the U.S. government,” the committee’s letter states.
A USCG spokesperson told the DCNF it “routinely evaluates vessels before arrival within U.S. waters” and examines vessels “for safety and security” after arrival as well.
The committee’s letter also requests for USCG to provide answers to nine questions by Feb. 3.
More than half of the questions relate to the protocols, process, or datasets USGC uses to vet foreign vessels and mariners.
For example, one question asks: “What classified and unclassified datasets are used by the USCG to vet foreign mariners, vessel owners, and operators?”
Another question asks: “Is the USGC’s vetting and screening process for foreign vessels and mariners fully automated, partially automated, or primarily manual?”
Other questions concern USGC’s possible coordination with federal agencies, like the FBI, and inquire into whether or not USGC has conducted a risk assessment specific to COSCO Shipping.
“The USCG must prioritize the integration of both classified and unclassified intelligence, strengthen interagency coordination and collaboration, and leverage advanced technological solutions to enhance its ability to detect and deter emerging threats,” the committee’s letter states.
COSCO Shipping did not respond to multiple requests for comment.
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