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The Fed Decides Wednesday — Here's What It Means for Your Mortgage, the Loonie, and Your RRSP

  Monday, July 27, 2026 The U.S. Federal Reserve hands down its rate decision at 2 p.m. ET on July 29. For most Canadians it will feel like background noise. It isn't — here's the plain-language version of why it touches your mortgage, your cross-border spending, and whatever's sitting in your RRSP. The short version: Markets are pricing roughly a two-in-three chance the Fed holds its rate at 3.50%–3.75% on Wednesday. That's not the story. The story is that this is one of the least certain "sure thing" holds in years — and Chair Kevin Warsh's press conference at 2:30 p.m. ET could matter more than the decision itself. Why this meeting is different The Fed has held its benchmark rate steady at 3.50%–3.75% through every meeting so far in 2026. On paper, Wednesday should be more of the same. Under the hood, it's messier. Persistent inflation, running well above the Fed's 2% target for a fifth straight year, has kept a rate hike on the table. The oil-...
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Hamas Releases Video of Two Israeli Captives Held in Gaza

 

Hamas, the militant group in Gaza, has published a video showing the first proof of life of two hostages being held: Keith Siegel, a 64-year-old American-Israeli citizen, and Omri Miran. In the undated footage, Mr. Miran states that he has been held captive for 202 days, while Mr. Siegel mentions the Passover holiday, suggesting the clips were filmed recently.

Mr. Siegel was kidnapped along with his wife Aviva on October 7. Aviva was freed in November during a brief truce, but at that time, she did not know if Keith was still alive. The Hostages Families Forum Headquarters confirmed that the Siegel and Miran families are aware of the latest video. This proof of life is the clearest evidence that the Israeli government must do everything to approve a deal for the return of all the hostages.

The video comes after another proof-of-life video released earlier in the week, showing Israeli-American hostage Hersh Goldberg-Polin, who lost his lower left arm during Hamas’s attack on southern Israel in October.

In the video, both Mr. Siegel and Mr. Miran urge the Israeli government to agree to a deal with Hamas for a ceasefire and the release of hostages. However, weeks of indirect negotiations have failed to produce an agreement. Hamas has previously insisted that any deal should include a permanent end to the war, full Israeli military withdrawal from Gaza, and unrestricted return of displaced people to their homes. Meanwhile, Israel maintains its stance that it must destroy Hamas in Gaza and free the hostages.

Despite warnings of potential humanitarian consequences, Israel appears to be moving ahead with plans for an offensive in Rafah, southern Gaza, where 1.5 million displaced Palestinians are sheltering.



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