Jun 22, 2018
The Daily Chase: OPEC decision looms; in conversation with Tim Hortons' president
By Noah Zivitz
How quickly the tone changes when OPEC meets. Late yesterday, Iran oil minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh reportedly walked out of a meeting where Russia and Saudi Arabia made the case for OPEC+ to raise output by as much as 1 million barrels per day. But earlier this morning, Zanganeh emerged from a meeting with his Saudi counterpart saying he’s not pessimistic about striking a compromise on production plans. Lots of competing interests within OPEC+; will have to see if a final decision is announced when OPEC leadership holds a news conference at 7:00 a.m. ET. We’ll track developments, market reaction, and assess how Trump’s tweets might be hanging over the proceedings.
INFLATION COOLS
Today's data dump from Statistics Canada might dampen expectations for the Bank of Canada to raise rates next month. Retail sales unexpectedly fell 1.2 per cent in April, led lower by weakness at auto dealerships. And overall inflation came in shy of expectations with a 2.2 per cent year-over-year rise in May.
DON’T MISS THESE INTERVIEWS
Tim Hortons President Alex Macedo joins us at 10:05 a.m. ET. Lots to discuss: growth strategy, competitive landscape, and keeping/making peace with franchisees. Later today, we’ve got BlackBerry CEO John Chen on Bloomberg Markets. And you’ll also want to watch out for the second part of Amanda Lang’s interview with Maureen Jensen. Suffice to say, the OSC chair has some strong words for Canadians who are chasing riches in cryptocurrencies without doing their homework.
HOW TO DEFUSE A TRADE WAR
Bloomberg News is reporting some top White House officials are considering options to stave off a trade war with China before the first wave of tariffs kick in on July 6. No indication of whether President Trump would play ball.
OTHER NOTABLE STORIES
-John Chen's software and security-focused turnaround plan at BlackBerry paid off in its fiscal first quarter, with the company reporting an unexpected profit (albeit on an adjusted basis). Revenue was also a bit stronger than expected at US$217 million. BlackBerry shares were up 5 per cent in pre-market trading as of 7:05 a.m. ET.
-All 35 banks subjected to the U.S. Federal Reserve’s annual stress tests (including TD, RBC and BMO) survived the first round, albeit showing they’d suffer USS$578 billion in total losses in the worst-case scenario. Main event is next Thursday when we find out if the Fed will approve the banks’ dividend and buyback plans.
-A new Angus Reid Institute poll shows 68 per cent of Canadians would tolerate working 10-hour shifts if it meant having a shorter, four-day work week.
-And watch out for Jameson Berkow’s analysis of what life without supply management would look like. It’ll be published on BNNBloomberg.ca later this morning.
NOTABLE RELEASES/EVENTS
-Notable earnings: BlackBerry
-Notable data: Canadian retail sales, Canadian CPI
-7:00 a.m. ET: OPEC leadership holds news conference in Vienna
-9:00 a.m. ET: IEA releases Gas 2018 report
-11:00 a.m. ET: Heritage Minister Melanie Joly announces export strategy for creative content
-1:30 p.m. ET: Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland meets with NAFTA advisory council in Toronto
Every morning BNN'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.
