North American equity market futures are drifting lower as investors continue to assess the progress (or lack thereof) on talks over the U.S. debt ceiling. U.S. President Joe Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy met late yesterday in what the speaker described as “productive” talks, but we’re still staring down a deadline that’s measured in days when it comes to avoiding a default. Now, this isn’t exactly new, and a resolution always happens so the consternation always feels overblown in the aftermath – U.S. Congress has raised, revised or extended the debt limit 78 times since 1960, so this is old hat, but the countdown clock to June 1 (when Janet Yellen says things will come to a head) is ticking.

A DEGREE OF WILDFIRE RELIEF

We’re not out of the woods just yet, but things are looking up when it comes to the wildfire situation in Alberta. As of 7 a.m. EDT, we’ve got 71 fires burning in the province, and only 20 out of control (“only” is doing some heavy lifting here, but it’s a marked improvement from the state of things a week ago.) Cooler temperatures and some rainfall are expected to bring some further relief this week, which is a welcome sign for the energy industry, which saw as much as half a million barrels of oil equivalent per day shut in due to said fires.

AIR CANADA KICKS OFF TRAVEL SEASON WITH A BANG

Looks like a solid start to the first somewhat normal travel season in about three years for Air Canada. The company says it flew 540,000 passengers over the May long weekend, with flights about 95 per cent full over that span. Clearly, a few things at play here – namely, Canadians seem eager to get out and about after being homebound due to pandemic restrictions, but there’s also the question as to whether the threat of WetJet’s labour strife contributed to Air Canada seeing increased demand.

OTHER NOTABLE STORIES

  • Shares of Canopy Growth are popping in the premarket after the company modified the structure of Canopy USA to accelerate its foray into the U.S. cannabis market.
  • Telus is outlining its spending plans through 2027, announcing it will spend $28 billion in Ontario and $19 billion in Alberta over the next four years.

NOTABLE RELEASES/EVENTS

  • Notable data: Industrial Product and Raw Materials Price Indices, S&P Global PMIs, U.S. New Home Sales
  • Notable earnings: Lowe’s Cos, Dick’s Sporting Goods, Toll Brothers, Urban Outfitters
  • Merck & Co AGM