Noah Zivitz

Managing Editor, BNN Bloomberg

Archive

Lowe’s is planning another major round of store closures in Canada. The home improvement retailer announced today it will shutter 34 locations in this country – including 12 in Quebec, where the company faced an uphill battle to win support for its $3-billion takeover of Rona in 2016; and it comes almost a year to the day after Lowe’s put 31 Canadian stores on the chopping block in 2018. “We are taking decisive action to build a healthy business,” said Tony Cioffi, the interim president of Lowe’s Canada in a release this morning. We’ll chase reaction from some of the prominent voices from around the time of the Rona takeover and industry experts for insight on tectonic shifts in the retail landscape. See the full list of stores slated for closure here.

ENCANA VS. LETKO BROSSEAU

Encana/Ovintiv is defending its plan to re-domicile in the United States – saying the rationale is “crystal clear” –  after one of its top shareholders came out against the plan. “We deeply believe this move ultimately will be positive for ALL shareholders,” CEO Doug Suttles said in a release a few hours after Letko Brosseau blasted the move as guaranteeing “forced sales by, and significant losses for, Canadian investors.”

CABINET SHUFFLE

Finance Minister Bill Morneau is expected to be one of the few big names who won’t be shuffled when Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s new cabinet is unveiled this afternoon. CTV News has confirmed Catherine McKenna will become infrastructure minister and Jonathan Wilkinson will assume responsibility for the environment portfolio. There are multiple reports that Chrystia Freeland will become deputy prime minister and minister of intergovernmental affairs, while François-Philippe Champagne will take over as foreign affairs minister. 

OTHER NOTABLE STORIES

-Neither Canadian National Railway or the Teamsters union provided an update overnight on the status of their negotiations as the walkout by more than 3,000 conductors and railyard workers enters into a second day.

-Target shares are up more than 10 per cent in pre-market trading after the retailer raised its full-year profit forecast

-Pembina Pipeline said this morning the Competition Bureau has given the go-ahead for its acquisition of Kinder Morgan Canada.

NOTABLE RELEASES/EVENTS

-Notable earnings: Metro, Lowe's, Target, L Brands

-Notable data: Canadian CPI

-10:00 a.m. ET: U.S. House Judiciary Committee hearing for markup of Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement (MORE) Act of 2019

-12:00 p.m. ET: Hydro One CEO Mark Poweska addresses Empire Club in Toronto

-1:30 p.m. ET: New federal cabinet to be sworn in

-2:00 p.m. ET: U.S. Federal Reserve releases minutes from last meeting

-3:30 p.m. ET: Prime Minister Justin Trudeau holds media avail at Rideau Hall 

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.