Americans value energy security over concerns about climate change more than Canadians, according to a new poll that suggests broad support for the controversial Keystone XL pipeline project.

The study, completed by public policy scholar Nik Nanos at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars in Washington, shows 63 per cent of Americans say North American energy security trumps the concerns about reducing greenhouse gas emission. That compares to 55 per cent of Canadians.

"The American public has a fixation on ensuring a stable supply of energy," said Nanos's survey, published on Monday.

Some 74 per cent of Americans surveyed said they support U.S. government approval of TransCanada Corp's proposed Keystone XL pipeline project, which would carry Canadian oil sands crude to U.S. markets. That compares to 68 per cent of Canadians.

“The research indicates that although both Americans and Canadians believe that reducing greenhouse gases is important, energy security,

In a post-recession world where a sustainable economy is valued more and more, investors are searching for investment options that bring financial returns, but also focus on key social environmental benefits, says Canadian fund manager Thomas George.

The co-manager of the TD Global Sustainability Fund says there is growing interest in socially responsible investments (SRI) that reflect trends in areas such as climate change volatility, organic and natural goods, as well as sustainability and technology.

"The pillars of sustainability are environmental, social and governance," says George, vice president at TD Asset Management. "The same factors that are driving people to buy hybrid cars or eat organic foods, these are the same people that are going to buy SRIs."

His comments come as some 192 countries celebrate Earth Day on Monday, a day supporting environmental protection.

The Earth Day Network, which coordinates Earth Day, aims to bring together civil, corporate and government

After about 15 or 20 minutes, only two of the marshmallow towers were still standing in an Edmonton hotel ballroom. They rested atop a series of uncooked spaghetti pieces, bound with a little bit of masking tape and some string. They represented the ability of seasoned technology executives to successfully work together – many cases, their failure.

The marshmallow challenge has become a popular management training technique whereby groups of business people are given a short period to do something simple. Here, at national gathering of chief information officers this week, it was used to help attendees understand why innovation seems so hard to cultivate in Canada.

Evan Hu, co-founder of Toronto-based consulting firm Ideaca, explained that even the brightest IT gurus sometimes struggle with the marshmallow challenge because they lack the “experimental mindset” of children, who perhaps don’t take it as seriously and are more ready to make mistakes.

“IT people love to plan,” he said.

If you’re going to have a bad week, it’s better to have it amid a jam-packed news cycle, but no amount of headlines elsewhere can mask the wretched week Japanese automakers are now enduring.

On Thursday came word that Honda is recalling 20,000 vehicles in Canada, part of a North American-wide effort encompassing up to 225,000 SUVs and minivans. The problem, says Honda, is with a safety feature within the automatic shifter that’s supposed to stop drivers from moving out of park without a foot on the brake.

So far there have been no injuries or damage reported, save, of course, for the reputation of Honda. It was only on last week that Honda joined four other automakers in pulling 3.4 million cars off the road to fix a problem with airbags. More than half of the recalled vehicles are Hondas, equipped with airbags that threaten to deploy with too much pressure, potentially exploding and sending out plastic shards. The airbags, supplied by Tokyo-based Takata Corp, are believed to have to

Tammi Roy was excited about the prospect of travelling the Rockies with her husband and three kids last year. She also knew that touristy spots like Banff and Jasper, though gorgeous, can leave visitors feeling gouged. So when the money-savvy mommy blogger was planning their vacation, she factored in every last potential twoonie they’d spend to avoid sliding into the red.

“We not only looked at the set cost of our trip but also at any costs that would come up while we were away, because unbudgeted expenses can add up,” says Roy, who blogs at My Organized Chaos. “We made sure to budget for daily activities, taxes, tips, and snacks, and we also had a small contingency fund in case any additional or unexpected expenses came up.”

Besides tracking her family’s expenses while they’re on the road, the Red Deer, Alta., mom also puts some money aside every single week for the family’s travel fund, even if it’s just a small amount.

But not all Canadians are such smart savers. While more than 90

A drop in gasoline prices across the country helped to trim Canada's annual inflation rate to 1 per cent in March, Statistics Canada said Friday.

That’s down 0.2 percentage points from 1.2 per cent in February, when the annual inflation rate posted a surprise 0.7 percentage-point increase. Economists are calling for the inflation rate to fall further in April, as gas prices continue to slide.

“After a one-month wonder spike, Canadian inflation is showing its true colours again – bland,” said BMO Capital Markets Chief Economist Douglas Porter.

“Both inflation and growth have much more consistently surprised to the low side than the high side in recent months, and that trend continues today. We remain in a world where both growth and inflation are scrambling to stay above 1 per cent."

Core inflation, which is closely watched by Bank of Canada in setting interest rates, held at 1.4 per cent in March. That remains below the bank's 2-per-cent target, and continues to support economists’

There's a fight for depositors going on in Canada's financial sector. In a bid to grab market share and lure clients with competitive interest rates on savings, President's Choice Financial this week said it is offering a 2.6 per cent rate on new deposits.

PC Financial, a discount bank partnership between Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce and Loblaw Cos Ltd, says it is offering the annual interest rate on non-registered chequing and savings accounts until July 15.

The offer is currently the best on the market. "It's a great opportunity for Canadians who want to reap the rewards of a market-leading rate, while not paying bank fees," Barry Columb, president of President's Choice Bank, said in a statement announcing the rate.

That tops the 2.5 per cent offered by rival ING Direct, a subsidiary of the Bank of Nova Scotia. Peter Aceto, ING's chief executive, said he doesn't expect the discount bank will respond by hiking its rate, which is being offered until the end of June.

"The answer

What’s behind Apple’s stock plunge? Contrary to popular belief, it’s not necessarily anything the company is or isn’t doing – it’s mostly the product of accelerating commoditization, a historical force that no hardware-making company can resist.

Apple shares dipped below $400 this week for the first time since December 2011, after a report from parts supplier Cirrus Logic showed weak demand from an unnamed customer. Given that Apple, which uses the company’s parts in iPhones and iPads, makes up 90 per cent or more of its business … well, it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to work out the math.

Apple shares were again below $400 in mid-Thursday trade – more than 40 per cent off their 52-week high – signalling investors are increasingly worried about the company’s ability to compete against a raft of competing Android smartphones. Expectations of a cheaper iPhone have been circulating for months, while most industry analysts also agree that Apple’s one-new-smartphone-a-year release