TOP NEWS
• Strikes end at Chevron's Australian LNG facilities
An Australian union alliance called off strikes at Chevron's two major local liquefied natural gas (LNG) projects, agreeing to resolve disputes that had threatened to disrupt around 7% of global LNG supplies.
• India stops new visas for Canadians, asks Ottawa to downsize missions as spat worsens
India on Thursday suspended new visas for Canadians and asked Ottawa to reduce its diplomatic presence in the country, sharply escalating a spat triggered by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's accusations linking New Delhi to a Sikh separatist's murder.
• Detroit Three automakers enter final hours to avoid wider UAW strike
The Detroit Three automakers and the union representing the companies' U.S. hourly workers entered the final hours to reach new labor agreements before the current coordinated strike expands to include more plants.
• TC Energy's Coastal GasLink pipeline fined for environmental non-compliance
British Columbia has fined Coastal GasLink, the natural gas pipeline being built by TC Energy C$346,000 for non-compliance with environmental regulations, the Canadian province said on Thursday.
• Canada's Stelco Holdings is said to weigh bid for U.S. Steel - Bloomberg News
Canada's biggest steelmaker Stelco Holdings is pursuing a bid for U.S. Steel, adding to a growing list of suitors for the iconic American company, Bloomberg News reported on Thursday, citing people familiar with the matter.
BEFORE THE BELL
Canada's TSX futures rose, boosted by an uptick in prices of most commodities, but stocks were set for weekly declines after logging their worst day in a year in the previous session. Futures tracking Wall Street indexes inched up after concerns over interest rates battered stocks in the prior session, while traders kept a watch on comments from policymakers to assess the central bank's next steps. European shares slipped and were on track to close the week sharply lower as investors assessed the prospects that borrowing costs will remain high for some time. Japanese stocks trimmed early steep losses to end slightly lower after the Bank of Japan kept stimulus unchanged and signalled it was in no rush to tighten policy. Gold prices edged higher following weak flash PMI data out of Europe, although a stronger U.S. dollar kept bullion gains in check. Oil prices rose as renewed global supply concerns from Russia's fuel export ban counteracted demand fears driven by macroeconomic headwinds and high interest rates.
STOCKS TO WATCH
• Northland Power Inc: Japan's Mitsui & Co said it had finalised a plan with the Canadian company to build a 1 gigawatt (GW) offshore wind farm in Taiwan at an estimated cost of $6.5 billion. Mitsui and Northland, which won the stake in the Hai Long bottom-fixed offshore wind project in 2018, aims to complete construction by the end of 2026 to generate a total of 1.022 GW, equal to the annual power consumption of 1 million households. The project, 60% owned by Northland and 40% by Mitsui, involves constructing 73 large wind turbines in the offshore area 45-70 kilometres (30-45 miles) off Changhua county and consists of three sections, HL2A, HL2B and HL3.
• Stelco Holdings Inc: Canada's biggest steelmaker is pursuing a bid for U.S. Steel, adding to a growing list of suitors for the iconic American company, Bloomberg News reported on Thursday, citing people familiar with the matter. Stelco is seeking to purchase the entire company as it looks to increase its portfolio of steelmaking assets and boost its share of the market for supplying metal to the automotive sector, according to the report. The Canadian company is in talks with a potential partner on its bid, Bloomberg News reported.
• TC Energy Corp: British Columbia has fined Coastal GasLink, the natural gas pipeline being built by the Canadian refiner C$346,000 for non-compliance with environmental regulations, the Canadian province said on Thursday. "The reporting error was due to an administrative contractor record discrepancy that was provided to the EAO between October 2022 and January 2023," Coastal GasLink said in a statement. Coastal GasLink will connect gas fields in northwestern British Columbia with the Shell-led LNG Canada project, which will be Canada's first liquefied natural gas project when it starts operating in the middle of this decade.
INSIGHT
• 'Power, influence, notoriety': The Gen-Z hackers who struck MGM, Caesars
Ransomware attacks are not new, but this group was extraordinarily skilled at social engineering and bypassing multi-factor authentication, said Wendi Whitmore, senior vice president for the security firm Palo Alto Networks' Unit 42 threat intelligence team, which has responded to several intrusions tied to the group.
ANALYSTS' RECOMMENDATION
• Obsidian Energy Ltd: RBC raises target price to C$14 from C$12, after the company announced plans to ramp up production to 50,000 boe/d by 2026.
ECONOMIC EVENTS (All timings in U.S. Eastern Time)
0830 Retail sales mm for July: Expected 0.4%; Prior 0.1%
0830 Retail sales ex-autos mm for July: Expected 0.5%; Prior -0.8%
EX-DIVIDENDS
National Bank of Canada: Amount C$1.02
(All analysts' estimates are according to I/B/E/S Refinitiv data)
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