Noah Zivitz

Managing Editor, BNN Bloomberg

Archive

Hydro One and Avista have pulled the plug on a $6.7-billion deal that was doomed by U.S. regulators’ fears about the heavy hand of Ontario’s government. The announcement was made last night, alongside confirmation Hydro One owes Avista US$103 million as a termination fee. But the news comes as no surprise to anyone who’s been keeping tabs on recent scathing rebukes by watchdogs in Idaho and Washington. Basic questions: what’s next for Hydro One and its shareholders? And is Doug Ford’s government happy?

MORNEAU’S HOUSING PLAN FOR MILLENNIALS

We’re seeing tons of interest in the finance minister’s comments suggesting the federal government is hunting for ways to help millennials get a toehold in the housing market. “There’s a number of things that we can think about in that area, and we continue to be thinking about that,” he said earlier this week. So, lots of blanks to fill in. In the absence of specificity, his remarks are lighting up social media. We’ll explore options at his disposal and the implications for a country already awash in fears about debt.  

CANADIAN EARNINGS SEASON HEATS UP

Canadian Pacific Railway posted a big improvement in its operating ratio and record fourth-quarter adjusted profit late yesterday amid a 17 per cent rise in total revenue. Have to point out the 49 per cent surge in quarterly revenue from energy, chemicals and plastics shipments. CEO Keith Creel isn’t kicking up his heels, saying on a call late yesterday “rest assured this is not a team that I will allow to get comfortable and complacent.”  And this morning, we’ve seen Rogers Communications set the bar for Canada’s major telecom companies with 112,000 net new postpaid wireless subscribers in the fourth quarter, while adjusted profit jumped 11 per cent. And the quarterly dividend is going up to 50 cents per share. We’ll keep an ear on the conference call at 8:00 a.m. ET for anything CEO Joe Natale might say about Huawei when he addresses analysts at 8:00 a.m. ET.   

MCCALLUM FALLOUT

John McCallum’s stunning comments about Huawei’s CFO having “strong arguments” to dodge extradition are causing a stir in Ottawa, with Conservative Party Leader Andrew Scheer saying he’d fire Canada’s ambassador to China, while the Prime Minister’s office tells CTV News no such plan is in place. Putting aside the domestic political gamesmanship, we’ll explore the risk this poses to Canada’s relations with the world’s two largest economies, and look forward to hearing from ex-CSIS Director Ward Elcock on Bloomberg Markets.

OTHER NOTABLE STORIES

-Great-West Lifeco is selling its American individual life insurance and annuity unit in a deal worth $1.6 billion.

-Shopify announced this morning former TD Bank CFO Colleen Johnston has joined its board of directors

-Bombardier announced this morning it’s buying the wing manufacturing operations for its Global 7500 jet program from Triumph Group for a “nominal” amount.   

-The partial U.S. government shutdown is now into a 34th day. Senators are expected to vote today on two proposals to end the impasse. President Donald Trump said in a tweet late last night he has decided to hold off delivering his State of the Union address until the shutdown is over.

-Canada has joined the United States in recognizing Juan Guaido as the president of Venezuela after he took an oath of office in the streets of Caracas yesterday. Top commodities expert Jeff Currie told our Bloomberg partners the turmoil is “a tad bullish” for oil prices.

-Carlos Ghosn has taken another step down in his fall from grace as an auto industry heavyweight. France’s finance minister confirmed in an interview with our Bloomberg partners that Ghosn resigned yesterday from his roles as chairman and CEO of Renault.

NOTABLE RELEASES/EVENTS

-Notable earnings: Rogers Communications, Freeport-McMoran, Starbucks, Intel, Norfolk Southern, Union Pacific, JetBlue, Southwest Airlines

-Notable data: StatsCan EI report

-7:45 a.m. ET: European Central Bank releases interest rate decision (plus news conference at 8:30 a.m. ET)

-10:00 a.m. ET: Environment and Climate Change Minister Catherine McKenna holds media avail in Toronto to “highlight climate action in Ontario”

-2:30 p.m. ET: Alberta Premier Rachel Notley addresses Edmonton Chamber of Commerce

-U.S. Energy Information Administration releases 2019 outlook

-World Economic Forum annual meeting in Davos; Canadian government sending ministers of foreign affairs, finance, economic development, and international trade diversification (runs to Jan 25)

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. Have it delivered to your inbox before the trading day begins by heading to www.bnnbloomberg.ca/subscribe.