Noah Zivitz

Managing Editor, BNN Bloomberg

Archive

Canada's jobs market just churned out another disappointment. Sixty-eight thousand Canadians were thrown out of work last month as provinces clamped down on COVID's third wave, according to data released this morning by Statistics Canada. Digging beneath the surface, we see the vast majority of jobs losses were in part-time work, and it looks like the manufacturing sector was hardest hit. Meantime, the world's largest economy is also failing to live up to expectations as non-farm payrolls rose by 559,000 positions; economists were expecting 675,000. We'll have plenty of analysis of what this tells us about the state of the economy and the outlook for how central banks will respond.

WHERE HAVE ALL THE GOOD PEOPLE GONE?

When Suncor CEO Mark Little recently told Tara about the “agonizing” decision to let really good people go in Suncor’s drive for efficiency, it got some of us wondering where the great people who’ve been let go in wave after wave of cuts in the sector have landed. So Tara did some digging and has pulled together some first-person accounts in a piece that you can check out here.

CEOs IN THE SPOTLIGHT

It’s shaping up to be a great start to our programming day. In addition to today’s main event at 8:30 a.m., Jon has a pair of chief executives on deck to discuss their latest quarters, the state of their industries, and perspective on the economy. BRP CEO José Boisjoli is up at 8:20 a.m. immediately before the jobs data land. And then we’ve got Lino Saputo Jr. at 8:40 a.m., whose dairy empire disappointed investors yesterday, with a sales slump prompting a sharp pullback in Saputo’s stock. If you miss either of those conversations live, check them out later today at BNNBloomberg.ca

‘RIDICULOUS’ AMC WANTS TO ISSUE SHARES, AGAIN

That word has been used on more than occasion recently to describe the mania surrounding AMC Entertainment Holdings. Most recently, it came from Canadian movie theatre executive Vince Guzzo who rued the potential damage to his industry’s reputation when he joined Greg on The Close, and explained how he “dumped” some shares early in the frenzy. AMC is taking full advantage of its time in the spotlight, with the disclosure that it’s now aiming to issue another 25 million shares.

OTHER NOTABLE STORIES

• All it takes now, apparently, is an emoji for Elon Musk to shake confidence in crypto. Bitcoin has been down as much as six per cent, with plenty of fingers being pointed at the Tesla chief executive.
• Lululemon has raised its full-year forecasts after reporting a near-doubling of first-quarter revenue amid booming online activity and a rebound in its brick and mortar business. Nonetheless, shares are flat in pre-market trading.
• The European Commission is launching yet another probe into Big Tech. This time, it’s Facebook that’s under the microscope, with the regulator investigating potential anticompetitive behaviour tied to the company’s Marketplace classified ads business.
• Bill Ackman’s SPAC has landed on a target: Universal Music Group, home to global superstars like Lady Gaga and Drake. Vivendi, which owns UMG, confirmed in a release this morning that it’s in talks to sell a 10 per cent stake in the label to Pershing Square Tontine Holdings.
• Mosaic Co. announced this morning it’s shutting down two potash mine shafts in Esterhazy, SK due to brine inflows and will be restarting production at its Colonsay mine to offset production that’s being lost in the process. The crop nutrient company said it’ll book up to US$125 million in costs and charges in the second quarter as a result.
• We’ve got a lumber deal. Vancouver-based Doman Building Materials Group is buying Texas-based Hixson Lumber Sales for US$375 million.

NOTABLE RELEASES/EVENTS

• Notable data: Canadian labour force survey, U.S. non-farm payrolls, U.S. factory orders, U.S. durable goods
• G7 finance ministers and central bankers meet in London
• 10:15 a.m. - U.S. President Joe Biden delivers remarks on jobs report
• 11:45 a.m. - Prime Minister Justin Trudeau discusses COVID-19 situation alongside Procurement Minister Anita Anand, Chief Public Health Officer Dr. Theresa Tam, Deputy Chief Public Health Officer Dr. Howard Njoo, and Brigadier-General Krista Brodie