Business News as of 6:30 ET

(Canadian Press DataFile Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Friday, Feb.@@ 1 6:30 p.m. ET@ BUSINESS NEWS ADVISORY Here are the top Business News stories from The Canadian Press as of 6 p.m. All times are Eastern unless otherwise stated. Coverage plans are included when available. Entries are subject to change as news develops.

Queries should be addressed to the business desk at 416-507-2138. To reach CP Business by email, send messages to business(at)thecanadianpress.com.

___@ TOP BUSINESS NEWS THIS HOUR@ ___ BlackBerry cryptic with Super Bowl sneak peek Canadian-Super-Bowl-Ads TORONTO _ After a week of massive hype for its new smartphones, BlackBerry has decided to remain secretive about its Super Bowl commercial in an effort to squeeze every bit of juice out of the pricey advertising campaign. The Waterloo, Ont.-based company, formerly known as Research In Motion (TSX:RIM), released a single frame of the 30-second TV spot on Friday, without any explanation of what it was, or what it meant. PHOTO. Moves National and Business.

___@ New BlackBerry Z10 selling for $1,000+ on eBay BlackBerry-Z10-eBay TORONTO _ It appears some BlackBerry fans absolutely can't wait for the new Z10 and are willing to pay big to get their hands on one early.Although it's difficult to know whether the transactions successfully closed, a number of the new touchscreen BlackBerrys appear to have sold on eBay for over $1,000, and in at least one case, nearly $2,000.

___@ Imperial raises Kearl pricetag by $2 billion Imperial-Oil CALGARY _ The first phase of Imperial Oil Ltd.'s Kearl oilsands mine will cost $2 billion more than previously expected as the company faced issues bringing Korean-made modules up to the mine site in northern Alberta and contended with harsh weather during start up.The first 110,000-barrel-per-day phase will now cost $12.9 billion, up from a previous estimate of $10.9 billion. will be update ___@ Sunwing union frustrated by negotiations Sunwing Sunwing's president says there's lots of time for the airline to reach a first collective agreement with its 900 flight attendants and avoid a strike."There's a long way to go and I'm confident that we'll get something done," Mark Williams said in an interview Friday.

___@ Oliver: we support west-to-east pipeline East-West-Pipeline OTTAWA _ The federal government is firming up its support of two projects that would see oil from Alberta piped to Atlantic Canada.Natural Resources Minister Joe Oliver says he has given tentative approval of one proposal to industry giant Irving Oil. Moves Business and National, guard against duplication ___ High court rules against pension holders SCOC-Pensions OTTAWA _ The Supreme Court of Canada has ruled against the pension plan members of a bankrupt Ontario company, saying they do not have priority over secured creditors. The landmark pension ruling on Friday is a major boost for companies with pension obligations that face tough restructuring issues. It is a setback for workers whose employers fall on hard times and have to wind up once-lucrative pension plans. Moves Business and National; Will be Writethru Costs drive down Domtar profit Domtar MONTREAL _ Domtar Corp. fell short of analyst estimates in the fourth-quarter, with profit down sharply as the Montreal-based paper maker (TSX:UFS) experienced lower selling prices, higher operating costs and continuing restructuring expenses."Our paper and pulp businesses performed largely in-line with expectations from a sales standpoint in the fourth quarter," Domtar president and CEO John Williams said in a statement.

___ The Source to open 20 new stores this year BCE-Source-Expands BARRIE _ The Source electronics retail chain plans to open 20 new locations this year across Canada, continuing an expansion that added dozens of stores last year.Most of the more than 700 locations operated across Canada by The Source are much smaller than the big-box stores operated by U.S. retailers.

___ Chrysler posts 38th month of sales growth Cda-Auto-Sales TORONTO _ Chrysler has begun 2013 as the No. 1 seller of vehicles in Canada as its sales continued to improve in January despite what auto industry analyst Desrosiers says was a 2.2 per cent decline industry wide last month.The resurgent automaker, rescued by U.S. and Canadian government loans after filing for U.S. bankruptcy protection in 2009, says January was the company's 38th consecutive month of year-over-year sales growth in Canada. Brian McKenna ___ US gains 157K jobs, jobless rate rises to 7.9 pct US-Economy WASHINGTON _ U.S. employers added 157,000 jobs in January and hiring was stronger over the past two years than previously thought, providing reassurance that the job market held steady while economic growth sputtered. The mostly upbeat Labor Department report Friday included one negative sign: the unemployment rate rose to 7.9 per cent from 7.8 per cent in December. The unemployment rate is calculated from a survey of households, while job gains come from a survey of employers.

___ ALSO IN THE NEWS ___ Air Canada launches western regional service Air-Canada MONTREAL _ Air Canada launched its regional service in rival WestJet's backyard on Friday with the introduction of Bombardier Q400 turboprops.The Montreal-based carrier said the first flights connected Calgary to Fort McMurray, Alta., Regina and Saskatoon. Nine additional routes will be added over the coming months.

___ Stock markets rise on solid U.S. jobs data Dollar-Markets TORONTO _ The Toronto stock market was higher Friday as U.S. job creation data and a strong showing in the American manufacturing sector raised hopes that indexes can build on strong January gains.The S&P/TSX composite index rose 83.59 points to 12,768.83 while the TSX Venture Exchange was ahead 6.95 points at 1,228.66.

___ Loonie closes flat amid solid U.S. jobs data Loonie TORONTO _ The Canadian dollar closed flat Friday amid solid U.S. economic data.The loonie had started the session lower but closed unchanged at 100.27 cents US as the U.S. Labour Department's non-farm payrolls report said the economy created 157,000 jobs in January. It also significantly revised upward the number of jobs created in the previous two months. The Labour Department said that a total of 127,000 more jobs were created than initially thought.

___ Twain centre becomes $10-million money pit Twain-Centre-Shuts TIMMINS _ A tourist attraction celebrating country-pop singer Shania Twain has officially become a $10-million money pit of taxpayer dollars.The Shania Twain Centre in this northern Ontario community permanently closes its doors today, barely a dozen years after its grand opening, and will be demolished to become part of an open-pit gold mine. PHOTO. With Twain-Centre-QuickFacts; moves Business and General ___ RBC: Manufacturers lacklustre in January Cda-Purchasing-Managers TORONTO _ A monthly gauge of Canadian manufacturing purchasing intentions improved marginally in January, the first increase since October.The RBC-sponsored index was 50.5 last month ___ Primaris announces $377M Alberta acquisition Primaris TORONTO _ Primaris Retail REIT (TSX:PMZ.UN) announced Friday that it is buying a portfolio of shopping centres in Edmonton and Medicine Hat, Alta., for $377 million.Primaris, itself the target of a friendly takeover offer by H&R REIT (TSX:HR.UN), says it will acquire nine properties owned by Sherwood Park Mall Ltd., Markalta Developments Ltd. and Sleeping Bay Building Corp.

___ Google's stock rides latest rally to new high US-Google-Stock SAN FRANCISCO _ Google's stock climbed to a new high Friday as Wall Street's best known indexes approached record territory, too.The shares of the Internet search leader peaked at $775.32 in afternoon trading, eclipsing the stock's previous record of $774.38 reached in early October. The company, which is based in Mountain View, Calif., went public at $85 in August 2004. APNewsNow; ___ Refining margins boost 4Q profit at Exxon Mobil US-Earns-Exxon-Mobil DALLAS _ Exxon says fourth-quarter earnings rose 6 per cent to $9.95 billion with help from higher profit margins in its refining business .The biggest U.S. oil company still makes most of its money by producing oil and gas, but that end of the business is less profitable than a year ago because of lower prices and production. Exxon is making up the difference at its refineries.

___ Generic competition, charges cut Merck Q4 profit US-Earns-Merck Merck & Co.'s fourth-quarter profit fell 7 per cent because of hits from generic competition and one-time charges, and the company pushed back plans for seeking approval of a key experimental osteoporosis drug.The quarterly results beat Wall Street expectations, but Merck shares fell Friday as investors learned the company is reviewing safety and efficacy data from a crucial late-stage patient test of odanacatib, the osteoporosis drug.

___ Boeing engineers begin vote on strike next week US-Boeing-787-Woes Just when Boeing really needs its engineers, they're throwing around the idea of a strike.Boeing is working around the clock to solve the battery problems that have grounded its 787s around the world. Its unionized engineers are a big part of that effort. APNewsNow.

___ Chevron profit up on asset exchange, refineries US-Earns-Chevron NEW YORK _ Chevron Corp. posted a 41 per cent gain in net income for the fourth quarter as the company produced more oil and gas, improved the performance of its refinery business and realized a gain from swapping assets in an Australian natural gas field.Chevron Corp. posted net income of $7.2 billion for the quarter on revenue of $60.6 billion. That's up from $5.1 billion on revenue of $60 billion a year ago.

___ Telus acquires Toronto firm Digital WYZDOM Telus-Digital- WYZDOM TORONTO _ Telus Corp. (TSX:T) says it's acquiring Digital WYZDOM, a leading digital forensics company.Vancouver-based Telus says Digital WYZDOM will add to its capabilities to help customers identify security risks and respond to security breaches.

___ Mattel 4Q results miss Wall Street's expectations US-Earns-Mattel NEW YORK _ It was a blue Christmas in toyland.Weak demand over the holidays for toys like Barbie and Matchbox led Mattel's results to fall short of expectations in the key holiday quarter. A litigation charge also weighed on results and net income fell 17 per cent. PHOTO.

___ Brookfield Office shows stable Q4 profit Brookfield-Office-Properties NEW YORK _ Brookfield Office Properties Inc. (TSX:BPO) has reported an increase in net income in the fourth quarter, although profits were lower for the year as a whole. The Toronto-based concern says net income attributable to common shareholders was US$342 million, or 59 cents per share, in the quarter.

___ (c) 2013 The Canadian Press

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