National Business

TORONTO — Canada's main stock index suffered a small loss midweek as dismal retail sales numbers cast a shadow over what are typically quiet summer days for markets. The S&P/TSX composite index closed down 36.26 points to 20,164.

HALIFAX — When Chantal Carter was pitching what would become Love and Nudes to a possible investor before the launch of the brand, his concerns about the size of the lingerie line took her aback.

Canada's second largest grocer reported softer sales in its latest quarter as results slipped compared with the grocery shopping bonanza that marked the start of the pandemic a year ago. Empire Company Ltd.

CALGARY — Amazon announced Wednesday it will purchase power from a massive new solar farm in Alberta, marking the e-commerce giant's second renewable energy investment in Canada.

WINNIPEG — Packaging company Winpak Ltd. says its board of directors has declared a special one-time payment to shareholders. The company says it will pay a one-time dividend of $3 per share.

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — An Iowa man has been charged with making and placing a pipe bomb that was recently found by a young girl in a Des Moines suburb, but investigators do not believe he’s linked to a bomb that was left at a nearby polling place in

WASHINGTON (AP) — Vice President Kamala Harris on Friday will make her first visit to the U.S.

MONTREAL — Cirque du Soleil is getting back into the swing of things. The Montreal-based circus company says five live shows are being added to its schedule for the coming months as it returns from pandemic closures.

ST. JOHN'S, N.L. — The government of Newfoundland and Labrador is absorbing the operations of Crown-owned Nalcor Energy, which is overseeing the troubled Muskrat Falls hydroelectric project, into the province's hydro utility.

CALGARY — WestJet plans to launch a cargo service using dedicated aircraft starting next year. The Calgary-based airline says the first of its 737-800 Boeing converted freighters are expected to be in service by the second quarter of 2022.