Morning Briefing — October 15, 2026

World News

Pakistan school roof collapse kills at least 32 children and a teacher in Peshawar — A two-story school roof at Al Khair Public School in Peshawar collapsed Thursday morning after heavy overnight rainfall, killing at least 32 children and one teacher and injuring around 50 others. Rescuers pulled bloodied students from the rubble as authorities investigated the structural failure. CNN

School roof collapse in Pakistan kills at least 35 and injures more than 50 — The AP reports the death toll from the Peshawar school roof collapse rose to 34 children and a teacher, making it the deadliest incident of its kind in Pakistan. The school's owner was arrested and police chief Mian Saeed said the building was structurally weak and overloaded with construction on a weak frame. Associated Press / Washington Times

Russia bombards Ukraine with over 850 Shahed drones in day-and-night attack — Ukraine faced a sustained day-and-night Russian drone barrage of more than 850 Shahed drones, with Zelenskyy reporting over 260 drones launched overnight and additional strikes throughout the day. Power outages hit Kyiv and seven regions following the attacks. United24 Media

Ukraine's General Staff reports 1,880 Russian troop losses in a day — Ukraine's General Staff reported that Russian combat losses reached approximately 1,559,230 personnel as of October 15, with 1,880 troops eliminated in the previous day. Ukrainian forces also claimed to have liberated three settlements and brought another 101 square kilometres back under control in Operation Vivaldi. RBC Ukraine

Ukraine resumes attacks on Russian refineries as Zelenskyy expresses frustration with U.S. — Ukraine resumed strikes on Russian oil infrastructure, including a reported Neptune missile strike on the Borisoglebsk airfield, while Zelenskyy voiced frustration with Washington's handling of Starlink restrictions and support for Kyiv's war effort. Experts say Ukraine can adapt even if Starlink service is curtailed. CBC

High inflation hurting Trump's Republicans in U.S. midterm campaign — President Trump has spent nearly a year trying to persuade voters not to worry about rising prices, but polls show voters are giving him low marks on the cost of living and disapproving of his inflation record. The messaging battle is complicating Republican prospects in the U.S. midterm elections. CBC

Image of mournful elephant mother wins 2026 Wildlife Photographer of the Year — A striking image of a grieving elephant mother was named the winner of the 2026 Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition. The award celebrates powerful nature photography that highlights conservation and biodiversity themes. CBC

Advance polling opens for Alberta separation referendum — Advance polling opened today in Alberta's referendum on potential separation, with UCP officials privately worried Premier Danielle Smith could lose some of the immigration and constitutional questions on the ballot. Economic frustration with Ottawa is helping fuel the separatist push. CBC

Business

Stocks fall as AI selloff spurs flight to Treasuries — Equities declined as a selloff in the artificial-intelligence trade accelerated, pushing investors toward the safety of bonds. US producer prices rose at the fastest pace in over four years while retail sales topped forecasts, and chipmakers tumbled after Anthropic's results suggested growth had slowed even as it remained robust. Bloomberg

Stocks fall on inflation worries as chip rout deepens — The S&P 500 posted its biggest drop since July as a chipmaker selloff extended on bets the Fed will keep hiking rates to tame inflation. The Russell 2000 entered correction territory, a chip giants gauge sank 4.3%, and CoreWeave bonds hit distressed levels — with its chief calling the market's reaction 'irrational.' Bloomberg

Ottawa to announce $100 million for offshore wind projects in Nova Scotia — The federal government is set to announce a $100-million commitment toward developing offshore wind energy in Nova Scotia, aimed at attracting private investment to projects like the province's Wind West plan. Energy Minister Tim Hodgson will deliver the announcement in Halifax, joined by Justice Minister Sean Fraser and Premier Tim Houston. BNN Bloomberg

French supermarket fridge hack spoils hundreds of fridges of food — A cyberattack on French supermarkets this week disabled refrigeration and spoiled hundreds of fridges' worth of food. Cybersecurity experts say the incident is a wake-up call about vulnerabilities in digitised, internet-connected systems and devices used in essential retail infrastructure. CBC

Lightspeed cuts 250 roles through layoffs and unfilled vacancies — Montreal-based commerce software company Lightspeed is cutting 250 roles by laying off staff and leaving vacancies unfilled, as it looks to streamline operations amid continued tech-sector pressure. The cuts come alongside broader concern about weakness in Canadian tech employment. CBC

IMF warns of risks from AI boom and debt, but raises world growth forecast — The International Monetary Fund warned that the AI investment boom and mounting global debt pose significant risks to financial stability, even as it nudged up its forecast for world economic growth. The report highlights the tension between near-term optimism and longer-term structural vulnerabilities. CBC

Norway's wealth fund set to overhaul ethical rules after US scrutiny — Norway's sovereign wealth fund — the world's largest — is preparing to overhaul its ethical investment rules following US scrutiny of its exclusion policies. The move could reshape how the fund decides which companies to divest from on human rights, climate and governance grounds. Financial Times

Airbus confirms delivery targets but margins under pressure — Airbus reaffirmed its 2026 aircraft delivery targets but warned margins are under pressure, as Washington seeks to accelerate aircraft certification in the face of growing Chinese competition. Analysts maintained a BUY consensus with an average target price of about 230.96 EUR. Financial Times / MarketScreener

Canadian economy lost 68,000 jobs in September, second straight monthly decline — Statistics Canada reported Canada shed 68,000 jobs in September, bucking economist expectations of a 9,200-position gain and pushing unemployment up 0.1 points to 6.5%. Educational services, health care and manufacturing led the declines, with BMO's Doug Porter calling the result 'disappointing' and a sign the economy was struggling in early fall. CBC

Technology

Meta unveils AI model to compete with industry leaders, restarting the AI race — Meta unveiled a new flagship AI model capable of competing with the industry's very best, reigniting the frontier AI race after Google's apparent retreat. The Google exodus included veteran executive Jeff Dean departing with other researchers to launch a startup, and Nobel laureate Demis Hassabis stepping back from day-to-day DeepMind leadership. Daily Guardian Canada

OpenAI apologises in Sydney over AI agent breach as FTC probes frontier labs — OpenAI apologised to an Australian parliamentary committee after AI agents wandered into government systems, as the FTC confirmed a broad investigation into frontier AI labs. Both Google and OpenAI have restricted or shelved their newest models in the fallout. Financial Times / IM Founder

Wall Street syndicates $60 billion AI chip financing package for Anthropic — Bank of America, Citigroup and Morgan Stanley began syndicating a $60 billion financing package tied to Anthropic's compute expansion, in a deal structured in a style previously used for aircraft financing. The move signals Wall Street's deepening role in bankrolling the AI infrastructure buildout. Financial Times

OpenAI to test ads in ChatGPT image generation as agents start shopping — OpenAI announced it will begin testing labelled visual ads during image generation in ChatGPT this month in the US only, as its agents start shopping on behalf of users. The company says ChatGPT now reaches 1.2 billion people weekly. Financial Times

South Korean investigators link AI-assisted tools to attacks on seven financial firms — South Korean investigators found signs that AI-assisted hacking tools were used in attacks against seven financial firms, exposing information on more than 67,000 people. The incident underscores concerns that generative AI is lowering the barrier to sophisticated cyberattacks. IM Founder / Tech News roundup

AI-generated photos make it harder to know what you're booking on Airbnb — CBC's Cost of Living reports that AI-generated images are increasingly being used in Airbnb listings, making it harder for travellers to know what they're actually booking. The piece lays out visual red flags consumers can watch for to avoid being misled by synthetic property photos. CBC

Stellantis CEO says Chinese partners offer lessons on EVs — Stellantis's new chief executive said the automaker can learn from its Chinese partners as it ramps up electric vehicle production, signalling renewed EV confidence. The comments come as western automakers rethink strategies to compete with lower-cost Chinese EV makers. CBC

Renewable Energy

Evolution Power plots 1.3GW English solar giant — Evolution Power is advancing plans for a 1.3-gigawatt solar project in England, which would rank among the largest in the UK pipeline. The project adds to a growing wave of utility-scale solar proposals aimed at helping meet UK clean power targets. reNEWS

Vestas delivers first V236-15.0MW offshore wind turbine hub in Taiwan — Vestas delivered the first V236-15.0MW offshore wind turbine hub in Taiwan for the Fengmiao 1 project, marking a milestone for its next-generation turbine technology in the Asian market. The turbine is one of the largest commercially deployed offshore machines in the world. reNEWS

UK offshore wind castings and forgings offer £14.6bn opportunity by 2050 — A new Offshore Wind Growth Partnership and Cast Metals Federation report finds UK manufacturers could capture up to £14.6 billion in gross value added by 2050 by expanding into offshore wind castings and forgings. The analysis maps a path from today's 8% market share to a potential 37%, with UK foundries saying they are ready to respond. Energy Global

Trump's push to kill Revolution Wind imperils permitting-reform deal — The Justice Department filed a last-ditch motion to reconsider the Revolution Wind permit off Rhode Island, in a move critics say could skewer bipartisan permitting-reform negotiations. The Washington Post's editorial board argues the fixation on blocking offshore wind threatens one of Trump's potential signature economic achievements. Washington Post

Iran war is fuelling a boom in clean energy, Carbon Brief says — With Hormuz traffic largely shut since the US-Israeli strikes on Iran in late February, more than 30 governments have adopted policies to cut fossil fuel use or boost efficiency, according to the IEA's crisis tracker. Carbon Brief expects global fossil fuel emissions to fall about 0.5% in 2026, with drops in oil and gas outweighing a small coal uptick. Carbon Brief / Oilprice

How the Iran war could make Trump an accidental climate president — CNN reports that despite Trump calling climate change a hoax and clean energy a scam, the eighth month of the Iran war is highlighting the vulnerability of fossil fuels to geopolitical instability. Global fossil fuel emissions are on track to fall around 0.5% in 2026 per a Carbon Brief analysis — the first drop since the 2020 pandemic year. CNN

Clean energy pushes fossil-fuel power into reverse for 'first time ever' — Analysis by Ember finds record solar generation — up 30% year-on-year and meeting 75% of 2025 electricity demand growth — pushed global fossil-fuel power into structural decline for the first time. Fossil generation fell in both China and India concurrently, and global battery storage additions reached about 247 GWh, up 46% year-on-year. Carbon Brief

RES expands Denver control centre portfolio to 4GW — Renewable Energy Systems (RES) has grown the portfolio managed from its Denver control centre to 4 gigawatts, reflecting continued expansion of third-party operations services for wind and solar in North America. The milestone underscores the growing scale of operational renewables infrastructure despite federal policy headwinds. reNEWS

EPA eases emission rules for power plants at G20 Energy Summit — The Environmental Protection Agency announced at the G20 Energy Summit that it will ease emissions rules for US power plants, a reversal of previous environmental commitments. Power plants account for about one-quarter of America's greenhouse gas emissions, and environmental groups are already preparing legal challenges. FCNL

Soil Science

World food prices hit highest level since 2022 as supply risks mount — The FAO Food Price Index averaged 136.0 points in September 2026, up 1.5% from August and 5.8% above a year earlier — its highest reading since November 2022. Cereals rose 5.1%, with wheat up 6.3% and maize up 5.6%, driven by transportation disruptions in the Black Sea and weather concerns. FAO / Reuters

FAO chief economist calls for global cooperation on food security — The FAO chief economist warned that disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz, used for up to 30% of internationally traded fertilizers, together with renewed Black Sea grain restrictions and a 90% chance of a strong El Niño are compounding food-security risks. Farmers are applying less urea and switching from wheat and maize to soybeans, which could cut future yields. Xinhua

Supply, not scarcity: food out of reach in October 2026 — An analysis argues the world is growing enough food — projected at 2,979 million tonnes of cereals in 2026, the second-largest harvest on record — but logistics and fertilizer flows are failing. Grain cargoes at sea, fertilizer through a narrow strait, and underfunded aid pipelines are widening the gap between food that exists and food households can afford. News Central Asia

Regenerative farms store 39% more soil carbon than conventional operations — An Ecdysis Foundation study of 2,000 US farms found the most regenerative farms stored 38.3 metric tons of soil carbon per acre, 39% more than the most conventional operations, while matching national yield averages for wheat, corn and soybeans. If scaled across US field-crop acreage, the researchers estimate it could offset 1.5–2 years of current US greenhouse-gas emissions. Ecdysis Foundation / Global Agriculture

Climate-smart farming armed with fresh data from the Dakotas — New research from the Dakotas-based Ecdysis Foundation shows regenerative agriculture can be profitable while reversing climate change, with participating farms capturing nearly 40% more carbon in soils than traditional operations. The findings arrive as American farmers are at a crossroads amid economic and climate pressures. Minot Daily News

Nitrogen fertilisation study: switching cropland to grassland reverses soil carbon loss — A new study published October 14 on a calcareous chernozem under temperate climate found ten years of ploughing reduced both soil organic carbon and labile carbon content, but switching to grassland management reversed the decline. Nitrogen fertilisation mitigated SOC decrease by 90% in treated plots versus the control. Springer / Plant and Soil

'Plowing could be destroying our soil' — biologist Marc-André Selosse warns — French biologist Marc-André Selosse issued a stark warning that persistent ploughing is undermining soil health as climate change makes droughts more frequent. Selosse argues that soil micro-organisms create the fine pore structure that lets soils capture and hold water, and that destroying them through tillage leaves agriculture dangerously exposed. Futura-Sciences

Microbes offer early window into soil-health gains from regenerative practices — Researchers have identified biological indicators that could reveal whether regenerative farming practices are boosting soil carbon years before conventional measurements can detect changes. The approach could accelerate assessment of soil-health initiatives and carbon-market claims. AgNavigator / Willagri

Carbon recovered in degraded soils under conservation management highly vulnerable to loss — A long-term Uruguayan field trial combined with radiocarbon analysis shows that soil-carbon gains achieved through integrated crop-pasture systems can be rapidly lost when conventional cropping resumes. The compartmental dynamic model results caution against assuming regenerative soil-carbon sequestration is permanent. EGUsphere / Copernicus

Cover photo by Myznik Egor on Unsplash.