Noah Zivitz

Managing Editor, BNN Bloomberg

Archive

U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan and the broader Biden administration are getting plenty of food for thought today after their very public plea for OPEC+ to pump more oil (which landed with a thud in Alberta).

The International Energy Agency has trimmed its global oil demand growth forecast for this year and dismissed supply fears that just a few weeks ago pushed crude prices to three-year highs. “The immediate boost from OPEC+ is colliding with slower demand growth and higher output from outside the alliance, stamping out lingering suggestions of a near-term supply crunch or super cycle,” the watchdog said in its latest market report. It also cautioned that OPEC+’s output is unlikely to follow a “linear trajectory” next year.

And we also heard directly from OPEC today, with this pledge in its latest report on the oil market: “Amid this precarious outlook, the vigilance and determined efforts by the countries participating in the [declaration of cooperation] will remain ever more important in striving to maintain a stable and balanced market.” So, sure looks like the cartel is in no rush to flood the market.

EXECUTIVE PARADE CONTINUES

We’ve got another slew of top Canadian corporate leaders on the network today, with plenty of company-specific and macro themes to explore with all of them. Fresh off reporting significant revenue growth as COVID restrictions eased in the second quarter, Cineplex Chief Executive Officer Ellis Jacob shares his view on the reopening process with Greg at 3:20 p.m. We’ve also got Linamar’s Linda Hasenfratz, who leads a Canadian industrial heavyweight that just swung back to profitability, at 9:10 a.m. We’ll hear from a couple major Canadian plays on food trends and consumption when Metro CEO Eric La Flèche and Pizza Pizza CEO Paul Goddard (whose board just nudged up dividend payments) join us shortly after 10 a.m. And we’ll catch up at 8:45 a.m. with Chris Goodridge, the president and COO of VerticalScope Holdings – whose quarterly results this week didn’t go over too well with investors despite a 59 per cent jump in advertising revenue.

TIMBER …

Lots of interest these days in the remarkable collapse of lumber prices. As of the close of trading yesterday, Chicago-traded futures have plummeted almost 71 per cent since peaking at US$1,686 in May. Worth pointing out that in the wide world of commodities, it’s lumber that U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell has often held up as a case study in transitory inflation.

OTHER NOTABLE STORIES

• Our Bloomberg News partners are reporting that Tim Hortons’ China venture is nearing a deal to go public via a SPAC, with an announcement possible this week. The backstory: Restaurant Brands International partnered up with Cartesian Capital Group in 2018 to open more than 1,500 Tim Hortons locations in China over the span of a decade.
• Canadian Tire’s online business is booming, with record e-commerce activity helping drive overall revenue up 23.9 per cent to $3.9 billion in the second quarter. Its normalized profit landed miles ahead of the average analyst estimate at $3.72 per share.
• Big deal announced after yesterday’s closing bell by Montreal-based software as a service firm MDF Commerce. It’s eyeing growth in the digitization of U.S. public sector procurement with the acquisition of Periscope Intermediate Corp. for $259.9 million. As a point of reference, MDF’s market cap as of yesterday’s close was $243.7 million. There’s a bought deal financing and a private placement to help finance the transaction.

NOTABLE RELEASES/EVENTS

• Notable data: U.S. initial jobless claims and producer price index
• Notable earnings: Brookfield Asset Management, Cineplex, CAPREIT, Chorus Aviation, Pet Valu, Indigo Books & Music, The Walt Disney Co., Airbnb
• 9:00: Parliamentary Budget Officer releases report "Financial Support for Air Canada"
• 9:00: Ontario releases quarterly fiscal update
• 11:15: U.S. President Joe Biden delivers remarks at the White House on plan to lower prescription drug costs