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VICTORIA — Three veteran New Democrat cabinet ministers and community stalwarts in Surrey and Victoria have announced they won't seek re-election in British Columbia's fall vote.

CALGARY — Calgary is cancelling a state of emergency over its water conservation crisis, but a ban on outdoor watering remains.

TORONTO — Several North American department stores are joining forces under a deal that will see Hudson's Bay Co. buy Neiman Marcus and spin it out into a larger business along with some of its other prestige retailers. HBC's US$2.

NEW YORK (AP) — The parent company of Saks Fifth Avenue has signed a deal to buy upscale rival Neiman Marcus Group, which owns Neiman Marcus and Bergdorf Goodman stores, for $2.65 billion, with online behemoth Amazon holding a minority stake.

TORONTO — Canada's main stock market eked out a gain on Thursday, helped by strength in the telecom, utility and energy sectors. The S&P/TSX composite index closed up 20.35 points at 22,244.02. The increase came as U.S.

CALGARY — A wildfire burning out of control in northern Alberta on Thursday prompted Suncor Energy Inc. to withdraw all non-essential workers from its Firebag oilsands site.

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — The City of New Orleans on Thursday officially welcomed thousands of people descending on the Big Easy for the Essence Festival of Culture.

ST. JOHN'S, N.L. — Newfoundland and Labrador's Liberal premier has once again penned a letter to the federal government opposing one of its decisions — this time about the reopening of the province's commercial northern cod fishery.

MONTREAL — The Quebec Professional Association of Real Estate Brokers says Montreal-area home sales rose 6.4 per cent in June compared with the same month last year.

CALGARY — Shell Canada's decision last week to greenlight its Polaris carbon capture project is likely just the start of a wave of positive investment decisions by proponents of the emissions-reducing technology, said federal Natural Resources Minist