Canada: AP

TORONTO - Canada's unemployment rate has slipped to 8.2 percent as the economy gained 21,000 jobs.

HELENA, Mont. - Gov. Brian Schweitzer said Thursday that he is seeking federal permission to import cheaper drugs from Canada for use in state insurance programs.

TORONTO - Canadian politicians on Thursday accused the nation's transportation agency of failing to take swift action after receiving acceleration-related complaints in Toyota vehicles three years before the company began a series of safety recalls.

ROCHESTER, N.Y. - Two jetliners crossed paths with flocks of Canada geese shortly after taking off from airports on consecutive days in New York and New Jersey, and the collisions with the large birds forced the pilots to make emergency landings. No one was hurt.

MONTPELIER, Vt. - Two Vermont utilities signed an agreement Thursday on a 26-year deal to buy power from Canadian provincial utility Hydro-Quebec, replacing contracts that expire beginning in 2012.

BAGHDAD - New early results show challenger to Iraqi PM winning in 2 provinces, reflecting tight contest.

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip - Gaza's Hamas rulers on Thursday released a British journalist they had held for a month amid allegations that he endangered the Palestinian territory's security.

TORONTO - A sports doctor at the center of drug investigations in Canada and the United States said Monday he treated Alex Rodriguez after the Yankees slugger had hip surgery last year and prescribed anti-inflammatories but not human growth hormone.

ANCHORAGE, Alaska - Sarah Palin has been no friend lately of socialized health care.

VANCOUVER, British Columbia - The perjury trial of a man who gave key testimony at the trial of the 1985 Air India terrorist bombings that killed 331 people has been delayed because the jury has been dismissed.

TORONTO - The Canadian Parliament's restaurant will serve seal meat this week in support of hunters battling a European Union ban on seal products, a Liberal senator said Monday.

TORONTO - The world's largest newsprint maker, AbitibiBowater, says it has reached a tentative labor deal with the majority of its unionized Canadian workers, which could help the insolvent newsprint giant emerge from bankruptcy protection later this year.

TORONTO - Canadians basked in glory hearing their national anthem played a record 14 times at gold medal ceremonies at the Vancouver Winter Olympics. But they raised an outcry when the Conservative government surprised everyone by announcing it was considering changing a lyric to "O Canada."

TORONTO - Canada's Conservative government says its federal budget will cut the country's record deficit and move toward near balanced budgets in five years by trimming defense spending, international aid and government operations.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Before there was Shania Twain, Celine Dion, or Avril Lavigne, there was Anne Murray — a pop-country international crossover star who paved the way for female singers to emerge out of Canada.

HALIFAX, Nova Scotia - The first officer of a sailing ship that capsized off Brazil's coast said Wednesday he and 63 others on board could have been rescued within hours if Brazilian officials had ordered planes and other boats to assist the ailing vessel sooner.

TORONTO - Canada's central bank held its key interest rate at a record low 0.25 percent on Tuesday and reaffirmed that it expects it will keep the rate steady until July. But the bank also signaled it is getting closer to raising rates.

DETROIT - General Motors Co. is recalling 1.3 million Chevrolet and Pontiac compact cars sold in the U.S., Canada and Mexico to fix power steering motors that can fail.

THE RECALL: General Motors Co. will recall 1.3 million Chevrolet and Pontiac compact cars sold in the U.S., Canada and Mexico.

CALGARY, Alberta - South Korea's state-run gas company is making a $565 million Canadian ($543 million) investment in two northeastern British Columbia natural gas plays.

OAKVILLE, Ontario - Tim Hortons Inc. said Monday that it got approval from the Toronto Stock Exchange to start its share buyback program for up to $200 million worth of common shares.

"Walking to Gatlinburg" (Shaye Areheart Books, 333 pages, $25), by Howard Frank Mosher: Morgan Kinneson, just 17, climbs Kingdom Mountain in the snow, bound for Canada with a runaway slave on the last leg of the Underground Railroad. And he is in a hurry.

HONOLULU - The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center has canceled its tsunami warning for Hawaii, with the state apparently escaping the roiling waves unscathed.

BRAMPTON, Ontario - A member of a homegrown terrorist group pleaded guilty Friday to participating in a plot to set off truck bombs in front of Canada's main stock exchange and two government buildings.

TORONTO - The Canadian government has called for an investigation into the recall of 270,000 vehicles made by Toyota Canada over safety concerns.

VANCOUVER, British Columbia - Former "Growing Pains" actor Andrew Koenig was found dead Thursday in a wooded area of a sprawling downtown park where he enjoyed spending time, apparently after committing suicide.

TORONTO - Newsprint manufacturer White Birch Paper Co. has filed for bankruptcy protection, citing declining demand for newspapers and the strength of the Canadian dollar.

NEW YORK - Standard & Poor's Ratings Services on Thursday raised its long-term corporate credit rating on Toronto-based Celestica Inc. to "BB" from "BB-."

SAINT-CHARLES-DE-BELLECHASSE, Quebec - A passenger train has derailed near Quebec City, slightly injuring four people.