The International Monetary Fund Tuesday trimmed its 2026 forecast for Canada's gross domestic product growth by 0.1 percentage points to 1.5%, while keeping the estimate at 1.9% for next year. The IMF published its latest World Economic Outlook on Tuesday. Canada's GDP expanded 1.7% in 2025.
Multiple municipal bond offerings this week have a high exposure to climate risk, specifically high Flood and Wildfire Scores, according to ICE Climate Data. A $17 million offering from Freeport, N.Y., records a Flood Risk Score of 5.0 out of 5.0, ICE reports.
The International Monetary Fund revised its estimate for 2026 global growth lower in its World Economic Outlook update released on Tuesday, with most regions seeing downward adjustments that are directly related to the conflict in Iran. World output is now expected to rise by 3.1% in 2026 after a 3.4% gain in 2025, a downward adjustment from a 3.3% gain for 2026 in the January version of the WEO.
The US Producer Price Index rose by 0.5% in March, the same as in February and below the 1.1% gain expected in a survey compiled by Bloomberg as of 7:45 am ET. Energy prices jumped by 8.5% in the month after a 2.1% gain in the previous month due to a 15.7% surge in gasoline prices, while food prices fell by 0.3% from a 2.4% gain in February.
T1 Energy (TE) shares were 5.7% lower in Tuesday's premarket activity after the company said it is proposing an underwritten public offering of $125 million in convertible senior notes due 2031. CarMax (KMX) shares were down 4.2% after the company reported lower fiscal Q4 adjusted earnings and net sales and operating revenue from a year earlier.
US equity futures were trending higher on Tuesday amid media reports that the US and Iran may revive their peace talks, while investors await the latest financial results of some of Wall Street's largest banks and data on wholesale prices. The S&P 500 rose 0.2%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average edged up 0.1% and the Nasdaq added 0.4% in premarket activity.
T1 Energy (TE) said Tuesday it is proposing an underwritten public offering of $125 million in convertible senior notes due 2031. The company plans to grant the underwriters a 30-day option to purchase up to an additional $18.75 million of the convertible notes to cover over-allotments.
The Federal Reserve will now likely deliver just one interest rate cut this year instead of two amid the oil price shock from the Middle East conflict, though the risks for the next rate reduction skew toward earlier rather than later, UBS Securities said in a note e-mailed Monday.
Financial stocks were advancing in Monday afternoon trading, with the NYSE Financial Index rising 0.5% and the State Street Financial Select Sector SPDR ETF adding 1%. The Philadelphia Housing Index was increasing 0.3%, and the State Street Real Estate Select Sector SPDR ETF was shedding 0.2%. Bitcoin was rising 2.3% to $72,375, and the yield for 10-year US Treasuries was slightly lower at 4.30...
US existing home sales decreased in March as softening job growth and weaker consumer confidence continued to deter potential buyers, data from the National Association of Realtors showed Monday. Sales fell 3.6% sequentially to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 3.98 million units last month.
Financial stocks were advancing in Monday afternoon trading, with the NYSE Financial Index rising 0.5% and the State Street Financial Select Sector SPDR ETF adding 1%. The Philadelphia Housing Index was increasing 0.3%, and the State Street Real Estate Select Sector SPDR ETF was shedding 0.2%. Bitcoin was rising 2.3% to $72,375, and the yield for 10-year US Treasuries was slightly lower at 4.30...
The March Labour Force Survey confirms that Canada's economic situation remains "fragile in the currently highly uncertain economic climate, given trade tensions with the United States and, now, the geopolitical situation in the Middle East, which, if it becomes deadlocked, could plunge the global economy into a downturn, said National Bank of Canada.
Canadian employment fell by 95,000 in Q1, the weakest performance since the COVID-19 pandemic, although following an even larger gain in Q4 2025, said Bank of Montreal. The big picture is that job growth has been very mellow over the past year, and the jobless rate is down a tick, noted the bank, after Friday's Labour Force Survey.
Canada's Labor Force Survey for March suggested a slight improvement in hiring, with employment up 14,000 after two months of declines in January and February, said UBS after Friday's LFS. The unemployment rate held steady at 6.7%. The bank expects that the unemployment rate could push higher through the summer, but then trend a little lower to 6.6% by year-end.
Investors will get an update on the state of the Canadian residential sector with the release of March housing starts on Friday, said National Bank of Canada. Judging by the data on building permits, the latter could have increased to 260,000 in annualized terms, led by the multi-unit segment, noted the bank.
The pace of US existing home sales fell by 3.6% to a 3.98 million seasonally adjusted annual rate in March from 4.13 million in February, compared with a smaller decrease expected to a 4.05 million rate in a survey compiled by Bloomberg as of 7:30 am ET, data from the National Association of Realtors released Monday showed. Total sales were down 1% from a year earlier.
The US dollar rose against its major trading partners early Monday ahead of the release of existing home sales data for March at 10:00 am ET and an appearance by Federal Reserve Governor Stephen Miran at 6:20 pm ET. Tuesday's highlights include data on small business sentiment and producer prices.
Commerzbank in its "European Sunrise" note of Monday highlighted: Markets: United States Treasury yields opened higher across the curve in Asia, slowly started consolidating in early trading. Federal Reserve seeking details on U.S. banks' exposure to private credit firms. U.S.: President Donald Trump has promised mass pardons to top administration officials before leaving office.
US equity indexes closed mixed on Friday ahead of high-stakes Iran peace talks, and as a tripling of inflation in March pushed government bond yields higher. The Nasdaq Composite rose 0.4% to 22,902.89, while the S&P 500 fell 0.1% to 6,816.89 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average slid 0.6% to 47,916.57. All sectors except technology, materials, consumer discretionary, and real estate fell.
Financial stocks declined Friday with the NYSE Financial Index decreasing 0.6% and the State Street Financial Select Sector SPDR ETF falling 1.1%. The Philadelphia Housing Index was little changed, and the State Street Real Estate Select Sector SPDR ETF rose 0.2%. Bitcoin rose 1.8% to $73,058, and the yield for 10-year US Treasuries rose 2.4 basis points to 4.317%. In economic news, US consumer...
Financial stocks were lower late Friday afternoon, with the NYSE Financial Index decreasing 0.4% and the State Street Financial Select Sector SPDR ETF falling 1%. The Philadelphia Housing Index was down 0.4%, and the State Street Real Estate Select Sector SPDR ETF was shedding 0.2%. Bitcoin was increasing 1.8% to $73,058, and the yield for 10-year US Treasuries rose 2.4 basis points to nearly 4...
US equity indexes were mixed in the final leg of trading on Friday, ahead of the high-stakes Iran peace talks in Pakistan and as a red-hot inflation report lifted government bond yields.
The consumer price index jumped by 0.9% in March, with energy prices up 10.9% on a record high 21.2% jump in gasoline prices, accounting for almost 75% of the overall price increase. Consumer prices were up 0.2% excluding food and energy prices, below expectations, with food prices flat.
The National Association of Realtors' measure of US existing-home sales is expected to slow to a 4.08 million annual rate in March, based on a survey compiled by Bloomberg, after rising by 1.7% to a 4.09 million rate in February. Existing-home sales were at a 4.02 million rate in March 2025, so the year-over-year change would be positive.
National Bank notes we'll get an update on the state of the residential sector with the release of March Housing Starts next Friday. National Bank notes we will on Thursday also get Existing Home Sales numbers. In other news, National Bank says Manufacturing Sales data on Wednesday may have expanded 3.8% m/m in February, on increases in the food and transportation equipment subsectors.
Gold futures eased midafternoon on Friday even as the dollar weakened after a report showed U.S. inflation surged in March on higher gasoline prices, cutting hopes for a cut to interest rates from the Federal Reserve. Gold for May delivery was last seen down US$28.50 to US$4,789.50 per ounce.
In Canada, CIBC says, the release Wednesday of both Manufacturing and Wholesale data for February should confirm the sharp rebounds already signaled by the advance estimates. However, CIBC adds, housing starts figures for March on Friday are likely to show building activity still. tracking a lower level than the 2025 average.
US consumer sentiment hit the lowest on record this month, reflecting heightened worries about higher prices and the overall economic fallout from the Middle East conflict, University of Michigan's preliminary survey showed Friday. The main sentiment index plunged about 11% to 47.6 in April from March. Wall Street expected a 51.5 print, according to Bloomberg's poll.
The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite were up, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down in late-morning trading on Friday as investors weighed the latest inflation data that came in below expectations. The US seasonally adjusted consumer price index rose by 3.3% year over year and 0.9% sequentially in March, driven by rising energy prices due to the war in Iran.
US consumer inflation accelerated to its highest monthly reading in nearly four years in March as the Middle East conflict sent energy prices sharply higher. The consumer price index advanced 0.9% last month, its strongest pace of growth since June 2022, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Friday.
The University of Michigan's preliminary consumer sentiment index fell to 47.6 in April from 53.3 in March, much lower than expectations for an increase to 51.5 in a survey compiled by Bloomberg.
Canada's economy added 14,000 jobs in March, or 0.1% month over month, which is more-or-less in line with consensus expectations for a 15,000 gain, said TD after Friday's Labour Force Survey. Employment was essentially flat across job types, with full-time employment edging down slightly, or 1,000, while private-sector employment rose by 15,000 on the month.
BMO's Douglas Porter says the bottom line to be taken from Friday's Canadian employment data is that "for a refreshing change", results were "no big surprise" in March, and he adds the big picture take away is that job growth has been quite modest over the past year, but so, too, has been the growth in the available labour force, holding the unemployment rate steady.
Gold futures eased early Friday even as the dollar weakened after a report showed U.S. inflation surged in March on higher gasoline prices, cutting hopes for a cut to interest rates from the Federal Reserve. Gold for May delivery was last seen down $31.10 to US$4,786.90 per ounce.
"Overall, and through the monthly volatility, the Canadian labour market still appears quite weak, which should limit the ability of the current oil price shock to widely spread into broader inflationary pressures, enabling the Bank of Canada to hold interest rates at their current level throughout 2026," says CIBC's Andrew Grantham after the release Friday of Canada's LFS employment data for M...
The broad market exchange-traded fund SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY) was up 0.1% and the actively traded Invesco QQQ Trust was 0.1% higher in Friday's premarket activity amid lingering geopolitical uncertainty and the release of consumer inflation data.
After a string of job losses to begin the year, Canada's labour market had "some signs of stabilization" in March, says Royce Mendes at Desjardins after the release of Friday's Labour Force Survey showing the Canadian economy added back 14,000 jobs in March, leaving the unemployment rate unchanged at 6.7%. But, he adds, all of the new positions were part-time, with full-time jobs "stable" after...
Berkshire Hathaway (BRK/A) sold 272.3 billion Japanese yen worth of yen-denominated bonds, the first such deal since Warren Buffett retired as chief executive officer, Bloomberg said in an updated report Friday. The offering consisted of six tranches and included maturities ranging from three to 30 years, the report said. The company has increased its investments in Japan, the report said.
Canada's employment was little changed in March, up 14,000 or 0.1% month over month, while the unemployment rate was unchanged at 6.7%, said the country's statistical agency in Friday's Labour Force Survey. The job increases were in line with a forecast 14,500 increase and 6.7% unemployement rate provided by MUFG.
The US seasonally adjusted consumer price index, a measure of inflation, rose by 0.9% in March, as expected in a survey compiled by Bloomberg as of 7:30 am ET and following a 0.3% increase in February, according to data released Friday by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
JD.com (JD) said Friday it closed its offering of 10 billion Chinese renminbi of senior unsecured notes. The offering comprised 7.5 billion renminbi of 2.05% notes due 2031 and 2.5 billion renminbi of 2.75% notes due 2036. The company said it plans to use the net proceeds for general corporate purposes. MT Newswires does not provide investment advice.
Canada releases the Labour Force Survey for March on Friday at 8:30 a.m. ET, said ING. Consensus is for a 15,000 payroll increase after the very soft 83,000 drop in February, noted the bank. However, the bigger signal for the Bank of Canada tends to come from the unemployment rate rather than the quite volatile monthly swings in jobs, stated ING.
In general the bond market is volatile, and fixed income securities carry interest rate risk. (As interest rates rise, bond prices usually fall, and vice versa. This effect is usually more pronounced for longer-term securities.) Fixed income securities also carry inflation risk and credit and default risks for both issuers and counterparties. Unlike individual bonds, most bond funds do not have a maturity date, so avoiding losses caused by price volatility by holding them until maturity is not possible.
Lower-quality debt securities generally offer higher yields, but also involve greater risk of default or price changes due to potential changes in the credit quality of the issuer. Any fixed income security sold or redeemed prior to maturity may be subject to loss.
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