More evidence that the marginal consumer is tapped out.
The figure represents a small percentage of Amazon’s 1.55 million total employees, but nearly 10% of its roughly 350,000 corporate employees.
Lacking Alternatives
Basically, Canada needs US markets a lot more than they need our markets, or anyone else’s for that matter.
Beaudry contrasted Canada’s dependence on global trade — roughly 40 per cent of the economy — with the U.S.’s much lower reliance at about 15 per cent. That difference, he said, helps explain why Washington can afford to use tariffs as a political and fiscal tool without triggering the same level of economic disruption seen elsewhere.
Quantum Shift?
If Kamala Harris were proposing that the federal government take ownership stakes in private companies, I can hazard a guess that Republicans would loudly oppose it. What’s going on with a party that has traditionally opposed government ownership of the means of production?
The Trump administration is in talks with the likes of Rigetti Computing (RGTI), IonQ (IONQ) and D-Wave Quantum (QBTS) to take equity stakes in them in exchange for federal funding, according to the Wall Street Journal.
Elbows Down!
I thought our new PM was just the guy we needed to stand up to the Americans. Oh, well…..
American truck maker Paccar Inc. is laying off 300 more factory workers in Quebec ahead of a 25 per cent import tariff to be imposed by the U.S. next month.
The factory in Sainte-Thérèse, a Montreal suburb, manufactures Kenworth and Peterbilt trucks and relies heavily on revenue from the United States.
Circling The Drain
Voters want lots of free stuff, so maybe those things will just pay for themselves, right? Unfortunately, I don’t know of a political party with currently elected members which would make a serious dent in any of that spending.
For the 2025-2026 fiscal year, Desjardins is projecting a $70-billion deficit, although the report acknowledges some estimates from other sources have been as high as $100 billion.
“There is a lot to unpack in the run-up to what will be a truly unprecedented federal budget,” said the report. “Deficits could rise to levels not seen in decades outside of a recession or pandemic, and the debt-to-GDP ratio is likely to be headed in the wrong direction.”
We Don’t Need No Flamin’ Sparky Vans
Apparently no one needs them anywhere else either.
General Motors is ending production of its BrightDrop electric delivery van in Ingersoll, Ont. in the latest blow to the province’s automotive sector.
The company says the decision is related to low demand for the model and it isn’t moving production elsewhere.
Golden Opportunities
While monetary commodities like gold and silver continue to set new daily records in terms of their dollar price, it’s interesting to note that the dollar prices of non-monetary commodities like oil and copper continue to slide. That’s probably because economies tipping into recession don’t need as much oil and industrial metals as growing ones.
Gold prices rose by over 2% on Monday, buoyed by expectations of further U.S. interest rate cuts and sustained safe-haven demand, as investors awaited upcoming U.S.-China trade talks and inflation data out of the U.S. this week.
But zero percent interest rates ought to fix all those problems, right?
Meanwhile, traders are pricing in a 99% chance that the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates next week, with another cut in December. Gold, a non-yielding asset, tends to do well in low-interest rate environments.
Wishful Thinking
At this point, I doubt that any measures are going to amount to anything other than flogging a dead horse.
Ottawa said the corporation is losing about $10 million per day, despite providing a $1-billion injection earlier this year to keep it operational. Since 2018, Canada Post has accumulated more than $5 billion in losses including more than $1 billion last year alone.
But Canada Post’s business model is meant to support communities across the country — especially those in remote locations who are hardest for private firms to reach — rather than chase profits, said Ann Armstrong, a professor at the University of Toronto’s Institute for Management and Innovation.
“There is something sacrosanct about a postal service,” she said.
“It seems to me the model is perfectly viable and needs to be preserved, if perhaps costs and so on need to be adjusted.”
Elbows Down!
For anyone who thinks that natural gas exports are going to magically replace job losses in the Canadian auto sector, think again.
Just five vessels sailed from the terminal in Kitimat, B.C. during the month of September, LNG Canada confirmed last week. It was short of the seven that had been expected, RBC Capital Markets said in note which pointed to a slower ramp-up of production at the Shell plc-led project since operations began in July.
Roughly 15 tankers per month will be required once the facility reaches full capacity, RBC noted.
Domino Theory
It’s becoming a little clearer every day as to why gold continues to set records. Debt financing problems in the financial system don’t appear to be going away.
RealTruck’s response to its debt crisis has centered on aggressive restructuring. In a notable move, the company executed a debt-for-equity swap, converting its 0.00% 2027 Convertible Notes into 7.00% 2030 Senior Secured Convertible Notes. This maneuver reduced principal debt but came at the cost of issuing over 316 million new shares, diluting existing shareholders and sending its stock to record lows…
RealTruck’s journey through its debt crisis exemplifies the high-stakes calculus of corporate restructuring. While its debt-for-equity swap and cost-cutting measures have stabilized liquidity, the company’s reliance on volatile markets and its elevated leverage ratio remain significant hurdles.
Paleolithic Reality
The common narrative is that the indigenous tribes living in a particular area prior to European settlement were always living there. But that’s not really true, is it?
“Very convenient to cloak your claims in spiritualism. …No matter what your legends say, you didn’t sprout from the plains like the spring grasses and you didn’t coalesce out of the ether. You came out of the Minnesota Woodlands armed to the teeth and set upon your fellow man. You massacred the Kiowa, the Omaha , the Ponca, the Otoe, and the Pawnee without mercy …and yet you claim the Black Hills is a private preserve bequeathed to you by the great spirit. … You conquered those tribes, lusting for their game and their lands, just as we have now conquered you for no less noble a call.”
Cockroach Infestation?
It’s not a great sign when the mainstream financial media starts to pick up on news items concerning lending fraud. It makes you wonder how deep the rot really is.
CEO Jamie Dimon offered a mea culpa and a warning Tuesday when discussing the losses his bank experienced from the downfall of subprime auto lender Tricolor Holdings, saying, “It is not our finest moment” and “when you see one cockroach, there’s probably more.”
But the fall of Tricolor and a larger bankruptcy of auto parts supplier First Brands have captured attention on Wall Street, and investors are looking for signs that credit among commercial customers is weakening.
Circling The Drain
Another green fad is close to biting the dust.
Beyond Meat Inc. tumbled the most since the company went public in 2019 after the troubled plant-based protein producer said nearly all creditors had accepted a debt swap that will lead to a substantial dilution of shareholders.
The stock sank as much as 58% to 84.5 cents on Monday, its worst-ever intraday decline. The shares had already fallen 47% this year through Friday.
Up Up And Away
Who’s bidding up the dollar price of monetary metals today? Central banks? Investors who lost tens of billions in Bitcoin on Friday? Whatever the case, the barbarous relic is really shining.
Spot silver climbed as much as 3.7% above $52 an ounce, exceeding last week’s peak, while gold traded near $4,100, building on a record-breaking run of eight weekly gains.
Jumping Ship
In reality, it’s a way of saying “we’re moving out” while trying not to make it look too obvious.
Linamar Corp. says it’s expanding its U.S. manufacturing footprint through a US$300 million deal to buy select North American assets of Aludyne Inc.
Circling Le Drain
One possible reason why gold is setting new records in dollar terms is fear of default; i.e. a growing realization that some governments are on the verge of stiffing their creditors. Today, default is becoming a possibility not just for third world backwaters, but for large economies such as France. The reasons are simple enough, as this video explains. France is spending itself into oblivion thanks to pensions that pay out more in benefits than a working person earns.
Deep Pockets
When I chose the title, I was referring to the deep pockets of taxpayers. There’s no way this boondoggle is ever going to turn a profit.
Carbon capture startup Deep Sky says it will build a commercial carbon removal facility in southwestern Manitoba.
Scroll down to examine Deep Sky’s track record when it comes to sequestering not just carbon, but tax dollars.
The Alberta carbon capture project was built at a cost of $58 million by the company, Deep Sky, which has received “investments” from the Alberta government ($5 million), two banks ($2.5 million), a grant from the Bill Gates Foundation ($40 million), with Royal Bank and Microsoft committed to buying 10,000 “removal credits.” On its website, Deep Sky, which also received funding from Investissements Quebec, pitches for more. “We’re looking for industry leaders who want to join our fight against the carbon crisis.”
Elbows Down!
What did anyone think was going to materialize out of this trip? All that remains is for the new governor’s water carriers to invent some positive spin for what is really another political loss.
Prime Minister Mark Carney is set to return to Ottawa today with no deals to remove U.S. tariffs from Canadian goods, but he’s leaving his key minister on Canada-U.S. trade behind to keep pressing the Canadian case.
Seismic Shifts
Despite all the hoopla about debt-driven GDP growth as a sign of a booming economy, the real economy apparently didn’t get that memo from the Keynesians. Shrinking business investment means less demand for basic commodities like oil.
They were about to get some life-changing news. Their employer, a major oil producer almost as old as Canada, was going to reveal a dramatic shift in strategy. Imperial would be selling its sprawling headquarters in Calgary, cutting hundreds of jobs and potentially outsourcing many of those positions overseas.
One worker said they had suspected something was up, but nothing that seismic.
Shooting Your Own Foot
In response to the decision to close an Ontario liquor bottling plant, Ontario consumers may soon be unable to buy liquor made in Gimli, Manitoba. So much for inter-provincial free trade.
“A message to all the bigwigs at Diageo: I swear to God, those bottles of Crown Royal are coming off the LCBO shelves. When the last person walks out through that door, we’re going to make sure LCBO takes off their brands because we need to stick together,” Ford said during a union rally in Brampton on Saturday.
Diageo also noted that the company will continue to have a presence in Canada, including their Canadian headquarters and warehouse operations in the Greater Toronto Area.