Here are five things you need to know this morning
Trade outlook falls to lowest since pandemic, poll finds: The threat of a trade war from Canada’s main trading partner has rattled consumer confidence to its lowest level since the early days of the pandemic. That’s according to the latest poll from Nanos Research, which in a survey for Bloomberg News found that more than two thirds of respondents say they expect Canada’s economy to weaken over the next six months. Economists have been lowering their forecasts in recent weeks, projecting Canada’s GDP to expand by just 1.6 per cent this year. That’s down from 1.8 per cent in last month’s survey. Confidence was lowest in Ontario and British Columbia, regions that are home to export-sensitive automotive and natural resource industries such as lumber. “The threat of tariffs against Canada has put a wet blanket on consumer confidence,” said Nik Nanos, the polling firm’s founder.
Apple bends to Trump’s will, announces major U.S. investment plans: Apple says it plans to hire 20,000 people, and spend US$500 billion in the next four years on domestic investments including a sprawling new server farm in Texas. The tech company made the announcement this morning, days after CEO Tim Cook met with the U.S. president last week. “We are bullish on the future of American innovation and we’re proud to build on our longstanding U.S. investments,” Cook said. Most iPhones sold in the U.S. are manufactured in China at facilities owned by Taiwanese company Foxconn. Foxconn recently bought a large tract of land north of Houston next to one of its existing warehouses.
Equinox Gold and Calibre Mining agree to merger: Equinox Gold and Calibre Mining have announced a US$5.4 billion deal to combine themselves. Under the terms of the deal announced Sunday, Calibre shareholders would receive 0.31 shares in Equinox for every share in Calibre that they own. On closing, Equinox shareholders would own 65 per cent of the combined company, with Calibre the rest. The combined company would be called Equinox and have gold mines in five countries.
Buffett’s annual letter to shareholders: We’ll be setting aside some time today to read Warren Buffett’s annual letter to shareholders, included in Berkshire Hathaway’s earnings. The letter is always full of pearls of Buffett wisdom, and it should be especially interesting to peruse this year given the general state of trade and the global economy. Among the highlights are a section on Japan, where Buffett says the company has been slowly adding to its stakes in a number of firms like Mitsubishi, Mitsui and Sumitomo. “We simply looked at their financial record and were amazed at the low prices of their stocks,” Buffett said.
Domino’s shares under pressure: We’ll be watching the action in shares of Domino’s Pizza after the company reported weaker than expected same-store sales growth. Revenue and profit in the latest quarter also missed estimates. On the positive side, the company notes it was the 31st consecutive year of sales growth from the international division.
