National Business

NEW YORK — The energy industry braced Wednesday for catastrophic storm surges and winds as Hurricane Laura cut a dangerous path toward the coastlines of Texas and Louisiana.

TORONTO — A technology-driven rally on markets in the United States spilled across the border to boost the tech sector in Canada and help drive the country's main stock index higher on Wednesday. The S&P/TSX composite index closed up 172.

TORONTO — Some of the most active companies traded Wednesday on the Toronto Stock Exchange: Toronto Stock Exchange (16,789.97, up 172.49 points) Northern Dynasty Minerals Ltd. (TSX:NDM). Materials. Up 40 cents, or 51.95 per cent, to $1.17 on 13.

Bolstered by early successes, drugstores are accelerating their push into traditional health care amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Loblaw Companies Ltd.

OAKLAND, Calif. — Facebook is pushing back on new Apple privacy rules for its mobile devices — and putting app developers in the middle.

TORONTO — Royal Bank of Canada believes the next few months will be difficult for the economy, despite detecting signs of a rebound.

WASHINGTON — Orders to U.S. factories for big-ticket manufactured goods jumped 11.2% in July, the third consecutive monthly gain. And the jump last month was even larger than the 7.7% increase in June, the Commerce Department reported Wednesday.

At home workouts and outdoor athletic activities are shaping up to be good business for Dick's Sporting Goods.

TORONTO — Mark Carney will lead a team at Brookfield Asset Management focused on investing in positive environmental, social and governance changes, the alternative asset manager said Wednesday.

National Bank of Canada's third-quarter profit topped expectations, even as the bank continued to put aside large sums to account for potential bad loans during the COVID-19 pandemic.