Canada’s economy lost 71,200 jobs in November, an unexpected and massive miss versus expectations of a 10,000 gain. It was the biggest monthly drop since 2009, and the unemployment rate ticked up to 5.9 per cent from 5.5 per cent. Both goods and services sectors shed jobs, and the private sector lost 50,000 positions. The loonie fell nearly half a cent on the news. South of the border, it was a completely different story, with non-farm payrolls rising a surprising 266,000 in November, well above estimates. There were upward revisions to the prior two months as well.
THRONE SPEECH FALLOUT
The first Question Period of the 43rd Parliament kicks off today at 11 a.m. ET. Yesterday, Justin Trudeau’s Liberal minority government outlined its priorities in the Speech from the Throne. While the speech focused heavily on climate change, the words “oil” and “pipeline” were noticeably absent. The Canadian Chamber of Commerce, for its part, says it’s looking for more details on how the government plans to address “our rapidly declining competitiveness” and is calling on all members of the house to develop a national economic strategy. Conservative Party Leader Andrew Scheer will issue his response to the speech at 10 a.m. ET.
OIL PRICES UNDER PRESSURE
Oil prices are down slightly after OPEC+ members agreed to cut production by 500,000 barrels a day, largely as expected. Meantime, yesterday Saudi Aramco priced its initial public offering at $1.7 trillion, making it the biggest IPO in history. Saudi Aramco shares will start trading next Wednesday.
SPRUCE POINT CAPITAL SPEAKS OUT
Yesterday New York-based Spruce Point Capital issued a “strong sell” recommendation on Canadian Tire shares. The New York-based short-seller cited a number of risks, including growing competition, unsustainable debt, a weak e-commerce strategy, a poor credit portfolio and accounting issues. Watch for our interview today with Spruce Point Capital’s founder and CIO Ben Axler.
OTHER NOTABLE STORIES
-Roots is cutting its full-year sales and profit outlook after a disappointing third quarter. The CEO acknowledged the company is performing below expectations and will “continue to face inefficiencies”
-The National Post is reporting the federal government and Alberta are close to a deal that will allow the province to impose its own version of an industrial carbon tax. On Wednesday, Jason Kenney said in a radio interview that Ottawa would announce an agreement "very soon" with the province on its Technology Innovation and Emissions Reduction levy, or TIER, which puts $30-per-tonne carbon tax on industrial emitters.
-Uber found more than 3,000 allegations of sexual assaults involving drivers or passengers on its platform in the U.S. last year
-German industrial output fell 5.3 per cent in October
NOTABLE RELEASES/EVENTS
-9:30 a.m. ET: The Prime Minister delivers a speech in the House of Commons on the anniversary of the 1989 Ecole Polytechnique Montreal
-10 a.m. ET: The Conservative Party issues a response to the Speech from the Throne
-11 a.m. ET: Question Period kicks off
-10 a.m. ET: Climate activist Greta Thunberg is expected to hold a news conference before joining a March for Climate demonstration in Madrid as the United Nations Climate Change Conference COP 25 continues.
-5:00 p.m. ET: A ceremony in Montreal to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the Polytechnique shooting.
Every morning BNN Bloomberg's Managing Editor Noah Zivitz writes a ‘chase note’ to BNN Bloomberg's editorial staff listing the stories and events that will be in the spotlight that day. Today's note was written by Senior Producer Roula Meditskos. Have it delivered to your inbox before the trading day begins by heading to www.bnnbloomberg.ca/subscribe.
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