The National Bank of Canada

Economists were disappointed by the Canadian GDP figures released last Friday. The economy grew only 1.2% in the first quarter of 2014, or 0.6% less than expected. In the U.S., Durable Goods Orders...

Canada – The consumer price index rose 0.3% in April, causing the year-on-year inflation rate to rise five ticks to 2.0% (from 1.5%). That’s the first time in two years that inflation hits...

Canadian statistics on inflation, published last Friday, were in line with expectations. It is worth pointing out that the inflation rate reached the target of 2 % of the Bank of Canada for the first...

New York Fed President William Dudley stated yesterday that the pace of the rate hikes will be relatively slow, and this news weighed on U.S. interest rates. He expects economic growth to accelerate...

Canada – Manufacturing shipments rose 0.4% in March, surprising consensus which was looking for a 0.3% decline. Eleven of the 21 industries posted higher sales, including machinery (+3.3%),...

Brent and WTI prices are rising as the U.S. and the European Union threaten to impose new sanctions on Russian companies and executives close to Vladimir Putin’s government. With Russia the...

Wednesday was an action-packed day in Canada, with the Montreal Canadiens winning their first playoff game, and Governor Stephen Poloz releasing the Bank of Canada’s Monetary Policy Report. It...

Further to the release of the most recent FOMC Meeting minutes, which took place on March 18 and 19, the USD lost ground against all of its counterparts. A more accommodating-than-expected tone helped...

Political stability has been restored in Quebec for the next four years at least with the election of a Liberal majority government last night. This bodes well for our economy, as long as the scandals...

Markets are skittish, resulting in a great deal of volatility for most asset classes. After an excellent start to the session yesterday, North American markets nosedived by mid-day! Over the lunch...

Canada – The consumer price index rose a consensus-topping 0.8% in February. But because of base effects (recall CPI soared 1.2% in February last year), the year-on-year inflation rate fell four...

Citizens of Ukraine’s Crimea region went to the polls yesterday to vote in a referendum on whether the province should join Russia. With approximately half the ballots counted, it appears that...

Yesterday, the Reserve Bank of New Zealand increased its key rate by 0.25% to 2.75%. New Zealand is the first developed nation to increase its rate since international banks have been offering record...

The U.S. Senate Banking Committee announced yesterday that it had come up with a plan to dismantle mortgage financing giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The project calls for a single regulated...

While Hollywood stars were honouring the top films of 2013 at the Oscars last night, Russian troops used the final few hours to consolidate their hold on the Crimea. A major diplomatic effort is...

Two Canadian indicators released last Friday caught our attention. First, Retail Sales data were quite a disappointment, down -1.8% in December, i.e. 1.4% less than expected. Then, in contrast,...