The employment picture in Canada and the US seems to be diverging. Here are the numbers: US Non-Farm Payrolls: 528k jobs added (250k expected) Monthly wage growth 0.5% (0.3% expected) Unemployment rate 3.5% (3.6% expected) Canadian Labour Force Survey: 31k jobs lost (15k gain expected) Wage growth 5.4% (5.9% expected) Unemployment rate 4.9% (5% […]
The Federal Reserve raised the target rate by 0.75% to the range of 2.25-2.5%. Chairman Powell confirmed that this is close to neutral. From the press conference: The FOMC is now data-dependant, so the magnitude and pace of future rate hikes is not pre-ordained Chairman Powell believes that modestly restrictive monetary policy is required so […]
‘Shock and awe’ is a military tactic where overwhelming force is employed to destroy an enemy’s will to fight. Today the Bank of Canada (BoC) deployed the central bank version by delivering a surprise 100bps rate hike. The last time the BoC moved by this amount was in 1998. With the public’s perception of medium-term […]
Cry Havoc and Let Slip the Dogs of War. Chairman Powell and Co delivered a strong message that the war on inflation was not one the Fed would lose as they delivered a 75-bps rate hike today and signalled that 75-bps was on the table for July. The Chairman also made it clear that rates […]
A Bond Play on the Rogers/Shaw Acquisition. In March 2022, Rogers issued bonds with an interesting clause referred to as Special Mandatory Redemption. If the merger is not concluded by December 31st, 2022, the bonds will be redeemed at $101. Shaw’s equity is roughly $5 below the takeout price, implying the market believes there is […]