It's not all good news for cannabis; Morgan Stanley buys Solium Capital, and more top news

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Despite surging revenue, Aurora Cannabis lost $238M in second quarter. The Edmonton-based company faced problems including lower prices for dried cannabis and cannabis extracts, excise taxes and other operational costs. Yet, in the three months ending Dec. 31, net revenues increased from $11.7 million in the second quarter of 2017, to $54.2 million. The revenue surge was thanks to $21.6 million in Canadian consumer sales since recreational cannabis was legalized in October, plus $26 million in Canadian and international medical marijuana sales. ? Here’s what people are saying.

Morgan Stanley has reached an agreement to buy Calgary-–based Solium Capital for $1.1 billion or $19.15 per share. The stock-plan administrator has more than 1 million clients who are employees of more than 3,000 different companies, many of whom are younger workers employed at startups. The deal must be approved by a two-thirds majority vote of shareholders. Should the transaction pass regulatory scrutiny, it is expected to be completed by the second quarter of 2019. ? Here’s what people are saying.

?Another partial U.S. government shutdown may be avoided as lawmakers reached an agreement “in principle” to fund the government. Top House and Senate negotiators said that if the deal received approval from leadership including U.S. President Trump, it could fix the immigration dispute, according to The New York Times. A deal needed to be reached by Monday for Congress to have enough time to consider and pass the agreement by Friday’s deadline. ? Here’s what people are saying.

Toys “R” Us is being resurrected as a brand under Tru Kids, with the liquidated chain's chief of merchandising at the helm. Tru Kids announced that it became the parent company of Toys “R” Us, Babies ”R” Us and Geoffrey brands last month, and while the new company didn't lay out a launch plan, it says there's still a gap between supply and demand for toys that needs to be filled. Mattel, maker of Barbie, also reported a resurgence of sorts — sales of the doll made more than USD$1 billion last year, up 14% from 2017. ? Here’s what people are saying.

Consumer goods companies such as Church & Dwight, Proctor & Gamble and Colgate-Palmolive are raising prices, or planning to do so again this year, says The Wall Street Journal, following a 2018 increase. Customers have mostly been able to absorb the higher costs; average hourly earnings for U.S. private sector workers rose 2.9% in January, although "even in a strong U.S. economy, there are limits to how much brands can charge without losing some customers," per the Journal. The rising costs of raw materials, as well as increased transportation expenses, were cited as reasons for the price growth. ? Here’s what people are saying.

Idea of the Day: Like every large business, General Motors must earn the right to exist, says chairman and CEO Mary Barra.

“Every action we’ve taken is designed to better align us with the opportunity ahead.”

What's your take on today’s stories? Share your thoughts in the comments.

— Jessica Hartogs and Carmel Melouney