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RALEIGH, N.C.

A temporary pause on charging the federal sales tax on many items has retailers excited, even though they say preparing for the relief will mean a lot of extra work in a short period of time.

OTTAWA — Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly welcomed president-elect Donald Trump's pick for the next U.S. ambassador in Ottawa, a former longtime Michigan congressional representative who voted for NAFTA and later wavered on new free trade deals.

SANTA CRUZ, Calif.

WASHINGTON (AP) — In the two weeks since Donald Trump won the presidency, he's tried to demonstrate his dominance by naming loyalists for top administration positions, even though many lack expertise and some face sexual misconduct accusations.

EDMONTON — Alberta is forecasting a $4.6-billion surplus for this fiscal year, but Finance Minister Nate Horner says "mounting pressures" threaten to soon put the province in the red.

OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. (AP) — A new study has found that systemic barriers to voting on tribal lands contribute to substantial disparities in Native American turnout, particularly for presidential elections.

MONTREAL — Quebec's auditor general says the province's Education Department has done little in the past two decades to help Indigenous students in Quebec, whose graduation rates lag behind those of Indigenous students in other provinces.

OTTAWA — A Liberal MP says his committee colleagues are wasting time by launching a third inquiry into the former employment minister instead of focusing on important legislation for Indigenous Peoples.

TORONTO — The federal government's "meaty" move to pause federal sales tax on a long list of items and send cheques to millions of Canadians this spring could factor into an improving outlook for growth in 2025, economists say.