Noah Zivitz

Managing Editor, BNN Bloomberg

Archive

We were expecting new details on the extent of Canada’s economic slowdown this morning. What we got instead was a surprise (tiny) growth spurt. Statistics Canada said gross domestic product rose 0.1 per cent in July (matching June’s growth). It previously estimated a contraction of 0.1 per cent for the month. The growth was powered by output in the agriculture and oil sands sectors. If you dig deep enough, the bite from higher interest rates is evident in today’s data: StatsCan said output by real estate agents and brokers sank 3.4 per cent in July. Looking ahead, StatsCan is estimating GDP was unchanged in August.

ONE-IN-FOUR HOLDING OFF ON RRSP/TFSA CONTRIBUTIONS: SURVEY

Back to that issue of the bite from higher interest rates: a new Angus Reid Institute survey demonstrates the extent of financial pain facing some – but not all – Canadians. For our purposes, what stands out most is the 26 per cent of respondents who said they’re deferring or not making a contribution to their RRSP or TFSA. That’s up seven points from the last survey in August. However, some households are thriving: 26 per cent of respondents said their household income is more than $200,000 and described their financial situation as better than a year ago.

THAT DIDN’T LAST LONG…

It looks like the Bank of England’s intervention yesterday may have sparked nothing more than a short-lived relief rally. European markets are in the red this morning and futures are pointing to a drop at the start of trading in New York after the S&P 500 and the S&P/TSX Composite Index managed to snap the six-session losing streaks yesterday. Bloomberg News has some phenomenal reporting today on the extent of the fiscal chaos in the U.K. In the words of one strategist quoted in the story, the Truss government’s tax-cut pledge is “the latest in a long line of self-imposed economically illiterate decisions.”

OTHER NOTABLE STORIES

• Cineplex announced yet another setback in its battle with Cineworld over their failed tie-up late yesterday after a U.S. bankruptcy court blocked an upcoming appeal hearing in Ontario from proceeding as scheduled next month. Cineplex said this doesn’t “impact the merits or quantum” of its claims against Cineworld (which is fighting a determination that it owes Cineplex $1.24 billion in damages) and that it will “continue to explore all avenues and forms of consideration to satisfy its judgment.”
• Fortis announced its dividend will rise six per cent to $0.565 per share, starting with the payment coming in December.
• Newmont is hunting for a chief financial officer after announcing Nancy Buese is leaving the gold miner. She’ll be replaced on an interim basis by Brian Tabolt, who joined Newmont last year after previous serving as Molson Coors’ chief accounting officer.
• Innergex announced last night it’s paying $96.4 million to buy out the minority interests in its portfolio of wind-powered operations in France.
• The worst of the airport bottlenecks may be in the past, but now some higher fees are on the way for travellers passing through Canada’s busiest hub: the Greater Toronto Airports Authority announced its airport improvement fee will rise by $5 as of Jan. 1 for departing passengers. “As a not-for-profit entity, it is incumbent upon us to ensure that we have sufficient revenues to maintain and invest in a world-class facility to provide our valued passengers with an experience that is appropriate for Canada's largest airport,’ GTAA President and CEO Deborah Flint said in a release.

NOTABLE RELEASES/EVENTS

• Notable data: Canadian GDP (July) and payroll employment, earnings and hours, and job vacancies; U.S. initial jobless claims and GDP (Q2 third reading)
• Notable earnings: Nike, Micron Technology, Bed Bath & Beyond
• 900: U.S. Surface Transportation Board continues hearing into Canadian Pacific Railway’s planned takeover of Kansas City Southern
• 900: Parliamentary Budget Officer releases report “House Price Assessment – Update” and costing note “Temporary enhancement to the Goods and Services Tax/Harmonized Sales Tax credit”
• 1330: Brookfield-listed affiliates investor day
• Bloomberg Canadian Finance Conference concludes (speakers include Brookfield Asset Management Managing Partner and CFO Wyatt Hartley at 1115; Enbridge Vice-President and CFO Vern Yu at 1155; Innovation, Science, and Industry Minister François-Philippe Champagne at 1430, CMHC President and CEO Romy Bowers at 1500)