Good morning. The Artemis II is getting ready to take a giant leap – we’ll have more on the moon mission, along with updates back on Earth including news on trade and defence. Let’s get to it.

The latest: Now five days into a voyage around the moon on the Artemis II mission, Jeremy Hansen appears to be handling the disorienting physical effects of weightlessness pretty well. The Canadian astronaut and sole rookie space traveller spoke to Canadian media during a live link over the weekend.

The mission: The purpose of the flight is to test the systems on board the Orion crew capsule, including life support and manoeuvring. The mission is seen as a crucial stepping stone that will enable a regular schedule of flights to the moon as early as 2028.

What’s next: The Artemis mission will break a record today for the farthest humans have travelled from Earth, exceeding the distance achieved during Apollo 13’s white-knuckled flight.

After that: The spacecraft will then be on a return course back to Earth and it is expected to splash down in the Pacific Ocean on Friday.

The latest: U.S. President Donald Trump made new threats yesterday to escalate strikes on Iran and its infrastructure if it doesn’t open the Strait of Hormuz by Tuesday. A defiant Tehran threatened to restrict another heavily used waterway in the region, the Bab el-Mandeb Strait off the Arabian Peninsula.

The context: In a social-media post, Trump vowed to hit Iran’s power plants and bridges and said the country would be “living in Hell” if the Strait of Hormuz, crucial for global trade, isn’t opened. Both countries have threatened and hit civilian targets like oil fields and desalination plants critical for drinking water in the five-week war, which has killed thousands and shaken global markets.

What’s next: Diplomatic efforts continue as mediators circulate a new ceasefire proposal today. Oman said its officials met with Iran to discuss proposals to ensure “smooth transit” through the strait. Trump has issued similar deadlines before but extended them when mediators have claimed progress toward ending the war.

The latest: Some “chocolate” is tasting waxy and flat, a consequence of cheaper formulas that include fillers. Perhaps you’ve picked up on the changes yourself this Easter weekend. The biggest players in confections have been tweaking their products over the past decade and a half to produce them more cheaply: by reducing the amount of cocoa and substituting the fat for synthesized oils.

What’s next: Faced with the challenges of shrinkflation, supply chain turmoil and ingredients changing, Canadian craft chocolate makers are fighting the good fight to keep the real thing available. Because of their much smaller size, use of premium beans and direct relationships with farmers, some makers are able to respond more nimbly to supply issues.

The latest: With the United States government on the hunt for ways to replenish its tariff stockpile, one option under consideration is duties aimed at countries that import goods made with forced labour, particularly from China’s Xinjiang region. But a review of Chinese trade statistics and the U.S.’s recent enforcement record suggests Washington faces gaps in its own approach.

What’s next: Analysts say it’s an early indication of how the U.S. will rule on Canada as it pursues investigations of 60 countries under Section 301 (b) of the Trade Act, probes that could result in Washington imposing tariffs of as much as 25 per cent on goods from countries that it deems to be falling short.

Also read: On Canada’s border, Montana’s Blackfeet look for a legal way out of Trump’s tariffs.