In the news today: Bank of Canada expected to hold key rate again
Bank of Canada expected to hold key rate again
Avery Shenfeld doesn't think the Bank of Canada will cut its benchmark interest rate at its decision on Wednesday, but if it does, he said it will be a 'pleasant surprise.'
'There's always a chance that they'll surprise with the rate cut,' the chief economist of CIBC said.
Most economists are also expecting the Bank of Canada will hold its policy rate steady at 2.75 per cent for a third consecutive decision later this week.
Stubbornness on the inflation front and surprise strength in the labour market have quashed arguments for further easing since the central bank's June decision.
The Canadian economy gained an unexpected 83,000 jobs in June, Statistics Canada reported earlier this month, driving the unemployment rate lower for the first time since January.
Shenfield expects Canada's tariff dispute with the United States led to an economic contraction in the second quarter of the year.
Here's what else we're watching…
US-EU deal sets a 15% tariff on most goods and averts the threat of a trade war with a global shock
The United States and the European Union agreed on Sunday to a trade framework setting a 15% tariff on most goods, staving off — at least for now — far higher import duties on both sides that might have sent shock waves through economies around the globe.
The sweeping announcement came after President Donald Trump and European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen met briefly at Trump's Turnberry golf course in Scotland. Their private sit-down culminated months of bargaining, with the White House deadline Friday nearing for imposing punishing tariffs on the EU's 27 member countries.
As with other, recent tariff agreements that Trump announced with countries including Japan and the United Kingdom, some major details remain pending in this one.
Trump said the EU had agreed to buy some $750 billion worth of U.S. energy and invest $600 billion more than it already is in America — as well as make a major military equipment purchase. He said tariffs 'for automobiles and everything else will be a straight across tariff of 15%' and meant that U.S. exporters 'have the opening up of all of the European countries.'
Von der Leyen said the 15% tariffs were 'across the board, all inclusive' and that 'indeed, basically the European market is open.'
Lawyer says Canada must hasten Gaza visa approvals
A Toronto immigration lawyer says family members of Canadians are dying in Gaza as the federal immigration department drags it heels approving visas through a special program launched in 2024.
Debbie Rachlis said Canada must speed up the approval process for the temporary special measures visa it is offering to members of Palestinian Canadians' families who are trying to flee the violence in Gaza.
Rachlis represents dozens of applicants to the program and said she is involved with 'at least five cases' in which people have died waiting for word on their visa. She lobbied for the special measures program as a member of the Gaza Family Reunification Project.
Canada opened the multi-step program offering temporary residents visas to members of Canadians' families trapped in Gaza on Jan. 9, 2024. It closed on March 26, after the program's cap of 5,000 visa applications had been accepted for processing.
Fewer than 1,200 visas had been granted as of June 21, said Jeffrey MacDonald, a spokesperson for the Department of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. That's less than a quarter of the visas Canada said it would hand out.
N.S. disabilities reform behind in housing plan
There's been a surge in the number of Nova Scotians with complex disabilities stuck in temporary housing, according to recent figures released by the province.
This rise in what are called 'temporary shelter arrangements,' or TSAs, operated by for-profit and non-profit agencies has occurred despite a plan by the province to decrease their use over the past two years.
The Department of Social Development describes the temporary housing as being needed whenever a person with a complex disability is in urgent need of housing, and options for a permanent home have been 'explored and exhausted.' Usually, the person is placed in an apartment, with one-on-one care, but without a long-term plan to improve their lives.
The province introduced a sweeping, five-year reform plan for the care and housing of people with disabilities in 2023. It was the result of a landmark court decision that found there was systemic discrimination against people with disabilities.
The plan called for a sharp decrease in the number of people with disabilities in temporary housing arrangements by 2025 but the opposite has occurred.
Motion expected on closure of B.C. injection site
Council in Nanaimo, B.C., is scheduled to hear a motion that could result in the city asking a provincial health authority to close a local overdose prevention site.
Coun. Ian Thorpe is expected to bring forward the motion at Nanaimo's council meeting today that will ask to 'formally request' Island Health to close the site on Albert Street, next to city hall.
Mayor Leonard Krog says he expects the motion to be debated and deferred to enable experts and those with an interest on the issue to come before council at a later time before a decision is made.
The site has generated enough concerns about disorder and violence nearby that city staff previously proposed building a 1.8-metre-high fence that was intended to protect those at city hall.
Nanaimo council decided against the proposal at a committee meeting earlier this month, with Krog saying he was unsure about the fence's effectiveness as well as the 'really problematic message' it would send about the challenges of disorder in the area.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 28, 2025.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Montreal Gazette
35 minutes ago
- Montreal Gazette
Louise Penny chooses Ottawa instead of Washington for her latest novel's launch
New York Times bestselling author and Knowlton resident Louise Penny made headlines when she announced in March that, in the wake of U.S. President Donald Trump's tariff threats against Canada, she would not travel to the United States to promote The Black Wolf, the 20th book in her enormously successful Gamache series. It comes out Oct. 28. She realizes she is fortunate to be in a position to make that choice, she said: It will surely affect books sales and, by extension, the bottom line for her publisher, Minotaur. 'My publisher was so incredibly supportive and understands,' she said in an interview. The book's U.S. launch was set for the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C. But in February, after Trump dismissed half the appointed trustees and the remaining board members, most of them his appointees, made him the chair of the historic institution, Penny joined the growing list of those deciding not to appear there. Instead, she moved the launch to the National Arts Centre in Ottawa, where the 2,065 tickets for the Oct. 28 event sold out within hours. She'll travel to several Canadian cities for the book's publicity tour and a couple of virtual events will be live-streamed from the U.S., but it's the first time in 20 years that one of Penny's tours won't include stops south of the border. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Louise Penny (@louisepennyauthor) Trump has said repeatedly that he would like to annex Canada, turn it into the 51st state and take its vast mineral resources. In an instance of fiction presaging reality, one of the threads in The Black Wolf is a movement to make Canada the 51st state. Penny was concerned that people would think she 'just ripped off the headlines' — this although The Black Wolf was conceived three years ago and completed a year ago, long before the issue made the headlines. The Grey Wolf, published last October, and The Black Wolf were designed together and intended as companion pieces, she said. Some of the pivotal scenes of The Black Wolf are set in the Haskell Free Library and Opera House, a cultural building straddling Canada and the U.S. A black stripe running across the library floor and under the opera house seats marks the border between Quebec and Vermont. The book's publicity tour will end at the Haskell Nov. 1 and 2. In-person tickets are sold out but virtual event tickets can be purchased in Canada through Brome Lake Books and in the U.S. through Phoenix Books. 'It was fun to do that quick pivot from the Kennedy Center and the U.S. tour to National Arts Centre and then to end the tour at the Haskell Free Library and Opera House,' Penny said. Since the Haskell opened in 1904, the citizens of both countries have used it without going through passport control and customs. In March of this year, Kristi Noem, the U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security, approached the tape in the library denoting the border and stepped back and forth across it. On the American side, she said, grinning: 'U.S.A. No. 1.' Crossing the line into Canada, she said: 'The 51st state.' 'She did it at least three times and was very clear in saying, 'U.S.A. No. 1,' and didn't even say 'Canada.' Just, 'the 51st state',' Haskell executive director Deborah Bishop, who is Canadian, told the Boston Globe. 'When I wrote The Black Wolf, I worried I'd gone too far, ' Penny said. 'I no longer have that fear.' What frightens her, she told The Gazette, 'is that this is exactly what tyrants do: Who do they target? They target the libraries, the arts centres, the universities: places open to anyone who might have a dissenting thought.' Penny said she believes that many people who voted for Trump 'thought he was one thing and now are beginning to realize that he is not what he pretended to be. The challenge is going to be for the Democrats to come up with a viable, thoughtful, articulate candidate.' While it is true that many are glum about the current Trump administration, she said, it's important not to lose sight of the fact that his term will end. And meanwhile, 'it is so important to be optimistic, to look at friendships and support and do a lot of laughing. It is so important to know what we have. 'It is so easy to see the darkness,' she said. 'The tragedy would be if we allowed it to overshadow everything else.'
Canada News.Net
an hour ago
- Canada News.Net
Economic Watch: Trump's sweeping new tariffs spark extensive criticism
U.S. President Donald Trump imposed sweeping new tariffs on 69 trading partners, sparking global criticism over economic disruption and sovereignty concerns. WASHINGTON, Aug. 2 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday signed an executive order that further modified tariff rates with 69 trading partners, drawing criticism across the world. The order, set to be implemented on Aug. 7, imposes "additional ad valorem duties on goods of certain trading partners," with rates ranging from 10 percent to 40 percent. SWEEPING TARIFFS Under the new executive order, the "universal" tariff for goods entering the United States will remain at 10 percent, the same rate implemented on April 2. However, the 10-percent rate will only apply to countries with which the United States has a trade surplus, CNN reported, citing a senior official. For countries with which the United States has a trade deficit, a 15-percent rate will serve as the new tariff floor. Still, for more than a dozen other countries, the tariff rates are higher than 15 percent, either because they agreed to a trade framework with the United States or because Trump sent their leaders a letter requiring a higher tariff, it added. On Thursday, Trump signed an executive order increasing the tariff on Canada from 25 percent to 35 percent, with the higher tariff taking effect on Aug. 1. Goods qualifying for preferential tariff treatment under the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement will continue to remain exempt from the new tariffs. Goods transshipped to evade the 35-percent tariff will be subject, instead, to a transshipment tariff of 40 percent. On Wednesday, Trump signed an executive order implementing an additional 40-percent tariff on Brazilian goods, bringing the total tariff amount to 50 percent. On the same day, Trump announced that Washington had reached a "full and complete" trade deal with South Korea, setting 15-percent tariffs on its exports. South Korea has also agreed to invest 350 billion U.S. dollars in projects "owned and controlled by the United States," and selected by himself, Trump said. Trump said on Wednesday that the United States would impose a 25-percent tariff on imports from India, starting on Aug. 1. On July 27, Trump and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced that they had reached a trade deal under which the United States would impose a baseline tariff of 15 percent on EU goods. The deal allows the United States to impose a broad 15-percent tariff on EU goods while securing zero-tariff access for a range of strategic American exports. In contrast, the EU has pledged to purchase 750 billion U.S. dollars' worth of American energy and commit an additional 600 billion U.S. dollars in investments in the United States. WIDE CRITICISM The higher tariffs continue Trump's reversal of the decades of globalization that made America's massive services economy the envy of the world but contributed to its long decline in manufacturing, CNN commented. "Our businesses ... need some degree of certainty, and all they're getting is chaos and inflation. So the Trump tariff trade war is a trade war on the American people. We've seen this week the chaos and uncertainty," said Chuck Schumer, Senate Democratic leader. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said in a statement on Friday that his government is disappointed by Trump's decision to increase the tariff on Canadian goods to 35 percent. According to the statement, the sectors of lumber, steel, aluminum and automobiles are heavily impacted by U.S. duties and tariffs. The Canadian government will act to protect Canadian jobs, invest in industrial competitiveness, buy Canadian and diversify export markets, said Carney. Brazilian Finance Minister Fernando Haddad said his government will soon announce a response plan focused on providing financing assistance, deferring tax payments, accelerating export tax refunds, and reactivating labor protection policies. Bernd Lange, chair of the European Parliament's Committee on International Trade, slammed the U.S.-EU deal as "significantly imbalanced." In a statement following the announcement of the agreement, he said that "concessions have been made that are difficult to bear." The trade agreement is "a political, economic and moral fiasco," Marine Le Pen, leader of the far-right National Rally party in the French parliament, said in an X post. "Hundreds of billions of euros of gas, as well as weapons, will have to be imported each year from the United States. This is a complete capitulation for French industry, and for our energy and military sovereignty," she said. "I don't think Trump wants a trade deal. He wants these countries to surrender their economic sovereignty," said Sizo Nkala, senior research fellow at the Center for Africa-China Studies, University of Johannesburg. "More than anything, the tariff rates represent an assault on and a violation of a rules-based multilateral trading system administered by the World Trade Organization," Nkala said.
Canada News.Net
an hour ago
- Canada News.Net
Trump cites new tariffs on India for buying Russian oil
WASHINGTON, D.C.: U.S. President Donald Trump declared on July 30 that his administration will impose a 25 percent tariff on imports from India, along with an additional levy targeting the country's continued purchases of Russian oil. Posting on his Truth Social platform, Trump acknowledged India as "a friend," but criticized what he called "excessively high" Indian tariffs on American exports. In justifying the penalties, Trump pointed to India's ongoing defense and energy ties with Russia. He argued that India's purchases of Russian military hardware and crude oil were indirectly sustaining Moscow's war in Ukraine. "If we are serious about ending the war, we must stop enabling it," Trump said, announcing the start of what he called a "Russia-related penalty" tariff, set to take effect on August 1. The move is part of a broader overhaul of Trump's trade policy, which includes renegotiated frameworks with the European Union, Japan, Indonesia, and the Philippines. Trump said those deals would open new markets for American products while giving the U.S. the authority to raise import taxes to support domestic industries and reduce the federal deficit, which has grown following his administration's income tax cuts. Trump has long used tariffs as leverage to reshape global trade dynamics. While supporters argue the strategy has helped U.S. manufacturing, critics, including many economists, warn that rising import costs often hit American consumers and businesses, fueling inflation and dampening economic growth. India, now the world's most populous nation, is seen as a key partner in Washington's long-term strategy to counterbalance China's global influence. However, India has maintained a neutral stance on the Ukraine war and has not joined Western sanctions against Russia. Its energy deals with Moscow, including purchases of discounted Russian crude, have drawn repeated concern from U.S. officials. During a February meeting with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Trump expressed optimism about a budding energy partnership, claiming that India had agreed to buy American oil and liquefied natural gas. Yet on the flight back from a recent visit to Scotland, Trump told reporters that a comprehensive U.S.-India trade agreement remained unfinished. When asked whether a 25 percent tariff was imminent, he replied cryptically, "We're going to see." With the new tariff measures set to launch in August, India now joins a growing list of U.S. trading partners facing heightened duties under Trump's revised trade regime — a campaign he says is aimed at protecting American jobs and correcting global imbalances.
