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Current account deficit down $500 million in Q1: StatsCan

OTTAWA - Statistics Canada says the country's Canada's current account deficit on a seasonally adjusted basis shrank by $500 million to $14.1 billion in the first quarter. The agency says the change largely reflected lower deficits on trade in goods and services. It says the deficit on trade in goods declined by $400 million in the quarter to $1.7 billion as both exports and imports strengthened, with exports recording a larger increase. The goods surplus with the United States remained at $11.2 billion, reflecting corresponding increases in both exports and imports.

Stakeholders in Empire State Building approve plan for IPO that could raise up to $1B

NEW YORK, N.Y. - The company that owns the Empire State Building is a step closer to going public. According to a Securities and Exchange Commission filing, more than 80 per cent of shareholders approved a plan to turn the privately held company into a publicly traded real estate investment trust. The plan, spearheaded by father-and-son real estate magnates Peter and Anthony Malkin, could raise up to $1 billion by selling stock in a new company. It will be called Empire State Realty Trust and include the Malkins' holdings in Manhattan and Connecticut.

Top U.S. tax breaks to cost $12 trillion over decade, benefit wealthy: CBO

By David Lawder WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The top ten tax deductions, credits and exclusions will keep $12 trillion out of federal government coffers over the next decade, and several of them mainly benefit the wealthiest Americans, a new study from the Congressional Budget Office shows. The top 20 percent of income earners will reap more than half of the $900 billion in benefits from these tax breaks that will accrue in 2013, the non-partisan CBO said on Wednesday.

Dish tops Sprint's bid for Clearwire ahead of Friday vote with $6.9 billion offer

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. - Satellite TV operator Dish Network Corp. on Wednesday raised its bid for Clearwire Corp., valuing the wireless network operator at $6.9 billion, in an attempt to outbid Sprint Nextel Corp. two days before Clearwire shareholders are meeting to vote on a deal. Dish's bid of $4.40 in cash per share is 29 per cent higher than Sprint's bid of $3.40 per share. Sprint wants to buy the half of Clearwire that it doesn't already own. Dish's previous offer, from January, was for $3.30 per share.

Most actively traded companies on the TSX, TSX Venture Exchange markets

TORONTO - Some of the most active companies traded Wednesday on the Toronto Stock Exchange and the TSX Venture Exchange: Toronto Stock Exchange (12,732.61 down 17.91 points): Bombardier Inc. (TSX:BBD.B). Plane and train maker. Up 11 cents, or 2.32 per cent, at $4.85 on 7.93 million shares. B2Gold Corp. (TSX:BTO). Miner. Up 15 cents, or 6.61 per cent, at $2.42 on 6.83 million shares. The gold sector led all advancers on the main index, rising 3.72 per cent to 195.60 points as bullion advanced $12.40 to US$1,391.30 per ounce on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Mutual funds holding U.S. stocks recorded outflows on Fed fears: ICI

By Sam Forgione NEW YORK (Reuters) - Investors in mutual funds based in the United States pulled $475 million out of funds that hold U.S. stocks in the latest week amid fears the Federal Reserve could scale back its easing, data from the Investment Company Institute showed on Wednesday. The outflows from funds that hold only U.S. stocks in the week ended May 22 came after two weeks of cash gains for the funds, said ICI, a U.S. mutual fund trade organization. In the previous week, investors gave the funds $131 million.

Fact sheet: 2014 Subaru Forester

2014 Subaru Forester 2.0XT Premium CVT BASE PRICE: $21,995 for base model with manual transmission; $22,995 for base with CVT; $23,495 for 2.5i Premium manual; $24,995 for 2.5i Premium CVT; $27,995 for 2.0XT Premium CVT. PRICE AS TESTED: $28,820. TYPE: Front-engine, all-wheel drive, five-passenger, crossover sport utility vehicle. ENGINE: 2-litre, double overhead cam, turbocharged, direct injection, horizontally opposed four cylinder. MILEAGE: 23 mpg (city), 28 mpg (highway). TOP SPEED: NA. LENGTH: 180.9 inches. WHEELBASE: 103.9 inches.

Oil falls below $95 because of ample supplies, weak demand

BANGKOK - The price of oil fell below US$95 a barrel Wednesday, parting ways with rising stock markets, as ample supplies keep buying appetite in check. Benchmark oil for July delivery was down 16 cents to $94.85 per barrel at midday Bangkok time in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract rose 86 cents to close at $95.01 a barrel in New York on Tuesday. It was the first gain for oil in five trading sessions.

Service Corp. to buy Stewart Enterprises for about $1.1B in combo of funeral home operators

HOUSTON - Service Corp. International plans to buy Stewart Enterprises Inc. in a cash deal valued at about $1.13 billion that combines the two largest funeral home and cemetery operators in the United States. Houston-based Service Corp. said Wednesday it will pay $13.25 for each share of Stewart, which is based in Jefferson, La. That's a 36 per cent premium over Stewart's closing price on Tuesday. Stewart has about 85.4 million shares outstanding, according to FactSet.

S. Korea logs smaller current account surplus in April

By Kim Soo-yeon SEOUL, May 29 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's current account surplus narrowed in April from the previous month on smaller trade gains and an increase in foreign investors' dividend repatriation, the central bank said Wednesday. The current account surplus reached US$3.97 billion in April, compared with a revised surplus of $4.93 billion the previous month, according to the Bank of Korea (BOK). The current account is the broadest measure of cross-border trade.
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