Trudeau plays up Canadian diversity and education in bid for Amazon headquarters + MORE Feb 9th

Your age only matters in as much as it can help form the list of financial ‘tasks’ you should do to prepare for your retirement, based on your situation. ROB AND JULIA CAMPBELL/STOCKSY
Presented by Scotiabank
We are all unique. We are different in ages, interests, incomes, skills, temperaments and tastes. But, when it comes to retirement savings, we also have a lot in common. Most of the things we need to do are similar, if not exactly the same. Let’s take a look at some of the “top tasks” to focus on as you move through your life. And remember that age is just a number. Some people hit milestones earlier, some later. And some move through life in their own way, at their own pace.
In your 20s: Allocating your paycheque
You enter the workforce with high hopes, trying to find the match between what you love to do and what will pay the rent. This can be a tough task as the job market continues to shift from full-time positions to short-term contracts or gigs. However you earn your money, you’ll face a big challenge: How are you going to allocate it? You may have a chunk of student debt to pay off…

The prime minister signals he’s not prepared offer the e-commerce giant any financial incentives to sweeten the deal.

OTTAWA _ Federal New Democrats are trying to pin down whether the Trudeau government plans to fulfil or abandon its pledge to close a controversial tax loophole, which critics say primarily benefits CEOs and other senior executives.
The Liberals made the promise to clamp down on what are known as stock-option deductions during the last election, but have remained ambiguous about their intentions since taking power more than two years ago.
It was in that context that the NDP, which had also promised to act against the deductions, tabled a motion Thursday calling on the government to make good on its promise in the coming federal budget. It will be put to a vote next week.
The Liberals supported a similar motion last March, but it did not contain a specific timeline for implementing the motion, which also urged the government to clamp down on tax havens.
The stock-option deduction works by taxing only 50 per cent of the earnings that an employee receives when they cash in any stock options received as part of their compensation packages, if certain conditions are met…

TORONTO _ North American stock indexes plunged steadily throughout the day, with losses on the Dow Jones industrial average and the Standard & Poor 500 entering correction territory.
In New York, the Dow was down 1,032.89 points, or 4.15 per cent, to 23,860.46, and the S&P 500 index was down 100.66 points, or 3.75 per cent, to 2,581.00.
The Dow and the S&P 500 are both 10 per cent below the record highs the indexes set just two weeks ago, putting them in what is known on Wall Street as a “correction.”
Meanwhile, the Nasdaq composite index was down 274.82 points, or 3.90 per cent, to 6,777.16.
In Toronto, the S&P/TSX composite index was down 264.97 points, or 1.73 per cent, to 15,065.61, in a broad-based decline. Gold was the only positive sector on the commodity-heavy index as more investors shifted toward the safe-haven asset.
The April gold bullion contract was up US$4.40 to US$1,319.00 an ounce.
Worries about inflation set the market rout in motion last Friday, and many market watchers have been predicting a pullback after the market’s relentless march higher over the past year…

It’s hard to resist their siren call when markets turn volatile.