Notes From The Desk
Bank of Canada Rate Decision – Between Scylla and Charybdis
Confronted with a hazard on each side of the strait, a trade war on one flank and energy-driven inflation on the other, the Bank held at 2.25% and steered visibly closer to the one it fears less. ...
Canada-US Trade – The Empire Tariffs Back
Trade talks between Ottawa and Washington collapsed Friday night, and by Saturday tariffs were again flying in both directions. Same trade war, another sequel, and this morning Trump added a new...
FOMC Announcement – Family Feud
Kevin Warsh said he wanted a good family fight at his second meeting as chairman, and three colleagues obliged. The Fed held rates at 3.50%-3.75%, but the vote was not unanimous, with three hawkish...
US Payrolls – Giving Back
Job creation was weak in June, although the unemployment rate managed to improve. The numbers. 57k jobs created (115k expected) May revised down to 129k, a hefty cut from the initial 172k print...
FOMC Announcement – There Is a Taskforce for That
Kevin Warsh’s first meeting as Fed Chair was less of a rate decision and more of a philosophical manifesto. The policy rate was left unchanged, but the institution itself is being rebuilt from the...
Bank of Canada Rate Decision – Looking Through the Looking-Glass
The BoC held its overnight rate at 2.25%, as expected, but the subtext was more interesting than the decision. Looking through. May’s employment report was strong, but the BoC looked straight past...
North American Employment – Fool Me Twice
The labour (or labor) market on both sides of the border had something to say this morning, and neither said what the market expected. South of the border, payrolls more than doubled the consensus,...
FOMC Announcement – Should I Stay or Should I Go Now?
The FOMC held the fed funds rate at 3.5-3.75%. The decision itself was never in doubt. What was remarkable was the four dissents, the most since October 1992. The other surprise was Powell...
Bank of Canada Rate Decision – Tiff be Nimble, Tiff be Quick
The Bank of Canada held its policy rate at 2.25% for the fifth consecutive meeting. The April Monetary Policy Report (MPR) is the first to incorporate the Middle East conflict alongside the ongoing...
Bank of Canada Rate Decision – On the Horns of Dilemma
Central bankers dread the word ‘stagflation’, and today Governor Macklem was doing his best to avoid saying it out loud. The BoC held the policy rate at 2.25%, caught between a softening economy...
FOMC Announcement – A Ball of Confusion
The FOMC held rates steady, citing uncertainty stemming from the Iran war as a reason to remain on the sidelines. Nonetheless, as this meeting provided updated forecasts, there was plenty for bond...
Canadian Employment – Help Not Wanted
The Canadian labour market delivered one of its worst non-pandemic months on record, losing 83.9k jobs in February. A harsh winter may have amplified the weakness, but Canada has seen winters...