The World This Hour - The World This Hour for 2025/01/29 at 06:00 EST

Episode Date: January 29, 2025

The World This Hour for 2025/01/29 at 06:00 EST

When a body is discovered 10 miles out to sea, it sparks a mind-blowing police investigation. There's a man living in this address in the name of a deceased. He's one of the most wanted men in the world. This isn't really happening. Officers are finding large sums of money. It's a tale of murder, skullduggery and international intrigue. So who really is he? I'm Sam Mullins and this is Sea of Lies from CBC's Uncovered, available now.

From CBC News, it's the world this hour. I'm Joe Cummings. At least seven people are dead following a stampede today at the Kumaila festival in northern India. The festival is the world's largest religious gathering. Salima Shivji has the latest. People kept stepping on us, this woman says, outside a temporary hospital. I made it out safely, but my mother has died.

The main crowd surge happened where the Ganges and Yamuna rivers meet, a spot considered holy for devout Hindus, on the biggest day of the world's largest religious festival, with a hundred million people expected to attend to take a bath in the waters in the belief it washes away their sins. Hours after the stampede, officials were still tiptoeing around a death tour. India's Prime Minister offered condolences for those who lost loved ones. But the state's chief minister, Yogi Adityanath, only said he hoped the injured would recover.

He asked people to not believe in any negative rumours. Crowd management and safety was a big question heading into this year's Mahakum Mela, a 45-day festival of faith and devotion, the last Mahakum also had a stampede on its biggest day, with 42 people killed in 2013. Salima Shivji, CBC News, Mumbai. With the Trump administration's February 1st tariff date fast approaching, Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Jolie is in Washington today for talks with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

Jolie says she still believes there's time for a diplomatic agreement to prevent the in Washington today for talks with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio. Jolie says she still believes there's time for a diplomatic agreement to prevent the tariff action. Along with Rubio, Jolie will be meeting with various members of Congress, most from districts that could be impacted by any Canadian retaliatory measures. It's the first full day of campaigning and Ontario's snap election. Progressive Conservative leader Doug Ford is insisting he needs a stronger majority mandate to face the threats of the U.S. tariffs.

But as Thomas Dagler reports, there may be other factors at play in this election gamble. Ontario Progressive Conservative leader Doug Ford is hitting the campaign trail after weeks spent pitching himself as a champion for Canada in the face of proposed U.S. tariffs. I can't stress enough how devastating these tariffs will be. But his opponents, like Liberal leader Bonnie Crombie, say by triggering this early vote, Ford is only looking out for himself. There is not one other Premier that is suggesting that this is the right time to go to an election.

Observers suspect Ford is aiming to secure a third straight majority government before Pierre Poliev's conservatives potentially sweep to power in Ottawa. The Ontario PC leader is also facing pressure from controversies including a lakeside mega-spa project, the hundreds of millions spent on rushing booze into corner stores, and the Green Belt land development scandal under police investigation. Ontario's voting day is scheduled for February 27. Thomas Daigle, CBC News, Toronto. The Bank of Canada makes its January interest rate setting this morning, and most analysts

are expecting to see a quarter point rate cut. Peter Armstrong has more. Canada has been treating us very unfairly on trade. Speaking to reporters on Air Force One, Donald Trump unleashes his usual attack on Canada, ending with the now familiar become a state or face terrorist. If you think it's making your head spin, imagine being a central banker. I can't think of a time with more uncertainty about the path for monetary policy. That's Royce Mendez, the head of macro strategy at Desjardins Capital Markets.

He expects the Bank of Canada will cut by another 25 basis points this morning, pointing out the volatility isn't just due to international tariffs. Canadian economy needs lower interest rates. More than 1.2 million mortgages will come due this year. Most of those loans were taken out during the depths of the pandemic when rates were at historic lows. The unemployment rate is high. The economy has slowed and now tariffs loom on the horizon.

So this morning's decision is important, but where the bank sees the economy heading in the months ahead may prove even more consequential. Peter Unstrung, CBC News, Toronto. And that is The World This Hour. For CBC News, I'm Joe Cummings.