Microsoft said Friday it is permanently closing nearly all of its physical stores around the world. Like other retailers, the software and computing giant had to temporarily close all of its stores in late March due to the COVID-19 pandemic. According to its website, Microsoft has 83 stores worldwide, including 72 stores in the U.S., and several others abroad where it showcases and sells laptops and other hardware. Friday's announcement reflects what the company calls a "strategic change" for its retail business as sales increasingly shift online. Microsoft said it would "reimagine" the physic

Florida's new confirmed coronavirus cases skyrocketed Wednesday by 5,500, a 25% jump from the previous record set last week and triple the level of just two weeks ago. The rapidly escalating daily figures continue a trend that began when Florida started reopening its economy last month and have caused several counties and cities to implement emergency orders requiring the wearing of masks in public places and crack down on businesses that aren't enforcing social distancing rules. Two weeks ago, Florida's one-day record for confirmed coronavirus cases was 1,601, set in mid-May. That has been e

The International Monetary Fund is estimating the Canadian economy will shrink by 8.4 per cent this year- a 2.2% steeper decline than it forecast in April.Globally, the IMF is predicting a drop of 4.9 per cent in GDP, significantly worse than the three per cent drop it had estimated two months ago.The IMF says the COVID-19 pandemic is disproportionately hurting low-income households and imperilling the significant progress made in reducing extreme poverty in the world since 1990.

Authorities on Tuesday identified three family members who died in their backyard swimming pool. 62 yearold Bharat Patel, his 33 year old daughter in law Nisha Patel and her 8 year old daughter were found unresponsive in the above ground pool, Monday afternoon by East Brunswick police responding to a 911 call from neighbours who heard screams. Police Lt. Frank Sutter told reporters police performed CPR when they arrived, but all three victims were pronounced dead at the scene. On Tuesday, the Middlesex County Regional Medical Examiner's Office said it had concluded the deaths were by accident

Rayshard Brooks was remembered at the Atlanta church where the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. once preached. The private funeral for the man who was shot by a police officer was held Tuesday at Ebenezer Baptist Church. The Rev. Raphael Warnock delivered the eulogy. Officer Garrett Rolfe shot Brooks in the back after Brooks fired a Taser in his direction while running away after a struggle with officers outside a Wendy's restaurant on June 12. Rolfe is white. Brooks was Black. King's daughter, the Rev. Bernice King, also delivered remarks at the funeral.

Novak Djokovic tested positive for the coronavirus on Tuesday after taking part in a tennis exhibition series he organized in Serbia and Croatia. The top-ranked Serb is the fourth player to test positive for the virus after first playing in Belgrade and then again last weekend in Zadar, Croatia. His wife also tested positive. “The moment we arrived in Belgrade we went to be tested. My result is positive, just as Jelena’s, while the results of our children are negative," Djokovic said in a statement. Djokovic has been criticized for organizing the tournament and bringing in players from oth

The World Health Organization says the record levels of new daily COVID-19 cases are due to the pandemic peaking in a number of large countries all at once. Emergencies chief Doctor Michael Ryan says that the numbers are increasing because the epidemic is developing in a number of populous countries at the same time. Some countries have attributed their increased caseload to more testing, including India and the US, but Ryan dismisses that explanation. More than 100,000 COVID-19 cases in FloridaHealth officials are reporting more than 100,000 people in Florida have been diagnosed with COVID-1

Thousands of people, many not wearing masks, attended U.S. President Donald Trump's first campaign rally since the COVID-19 pandemic began. But the B.O.K. Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma, was far from its 19-thousand seat capacity. Trump campaign officials said protesters prevented the president's supporters from entering the stadium, but journalists in Tulsa reported there was no blocked entry to the area where the rally was held. Trump supporters faced off with protesters throughout the evening, but while there were shouting matches, things remained largely peaceful.

China has charged two detained Canadians with spying today, further escalating tensions between the two countries. Chinese prosecutors say Michael Kovrig was charged on suspicion of spying for state secrets. They say Michael Spavor was charged on suspicion of spying for a foreign entity and illegally providing state secrets. The charges were announced by China's highest prosecutor's office in brief social media posts. Both men have been held since December 2018 in a move seen as an apparent attempt to pressure Canada to release Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou. They have been in Chinese prisons