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1. Labor Market – Sign of Weakness

• Job losses continued in July, with Canada shedding 40,800 positions.
• The employment rate fell to 60.7%, the lowest in eight months, while the unemployment rate remained stuck at 6.9%, a multi-year high.
• Youth were hit particularly hard: the unemployment rate for ages 15–24 spiked to 14.6%, the highest (outside pandemic years) since 2010, and their employment rate dropped to 53.6%.
• Job losses were widespread across sectors like information, culture & recreation (−29 000), construction (−22 000), and business services (−19 000), although transportation/warehousing gained over 26,000 jobs.
• Average hourly wages for permanent employees rose 3.5% to C$37.66.
  

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2. Housing Market – Rebound in Sales

• Canadian home sales increased 3.8% month-over-month in July and were up 6.6% year-over-year—marking continued recovery in housing activity.
• However, the Home Price Index (HPI) remained flat from June and still sits 3.4% below July 2024 levels.
• The national average selling price only edged up 0.6% year-over-year.
  

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3. Trade & Agricultural Sector – Canola Crunch

• China imposed provisional anti-dumping duties of 75.8% on Canadian canola imports, significantly disrupting a market valued at nearly C$5 billion in 2024.
• Canola futures dropped over 6%, reflecting immediate market reaction.
  
• In response, the Canadian government is evaluating support measures for canola farmers while pursuing dialogue with China and diversifying trade relationships.
  Reuters

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4. Currency & Market Sentiment

• The Canadian dollar slid to a six-day low, trading at approximately 1.3784 CAD/USD (~72.6 U.S. cents), as market participants lowered expectations for a September Bank of Canada rate cut to about 36%, up from 17% earlier.
• This followed disappointing job data and growing bearish sentiment (short positions hit a year-high of 79,420 contracts).
• Meanwhile, 10-year Canadian bond yields declined to around 3.376%, the lowest since early July.
  

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Summary Table: Canada’s Economic Landscape This Week

Area	Highlight
Labor Market	Significant job losses; rising youth unemployment; stagnant overall unemployment
Housing	Sales rebound; prices still lag behind last year
Agriculture / Trade	Sharp canola tariffs by China; government considering support
Currency & Bonds	Canadian dollar weakened; bond yields fell amid rate cut speculation

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Key Takeaways

• The labor market shows clear strain, raising concerns about economic resilience and possibly prompting policy action.
• Housing activity remains strong, though prices haven’t rebounded—a mixed signal for the broader economy.
• Trade tensions with China, particularly over canola, pose significant risks for the agricultural sector.
• Financial markets are adjusting, with currency and bond markets signaling rising expectations of monetary easing.

Canadian home sales rose 3.8 per cent in July for the fourth consecutive month this year, as house prices remained steady across the nation.

There were 40,228 sales last month after removing seasonal influences, according to the Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA). That is up from 3.8 per cent from 38,737 sales in June.

The increase of sales in July was once again overwhelmingly led by the Greater Toronto Area, where home sale transactions, while still historically low, have rebounded a cumulative 35.5 per cent since March, CREA said.

In July, Ontario saw the largest increase in sales, with 14,464 homes sold on a seasonally adjusted basis, up 7.7 per cent from 13,479 a month prior.

CREA senior economist Shaun Cathcart said the increase in sales over the past four months may be a signal that the long-anticipated pickup in sales following the inflation crisis has “finally arrived.”

“Looking ahead a little bit, it will be interesting to see how buyers react to the burst of new supply that typically shows up in the first half of September,” he said in a release on Friday.

There were 202,500 properties listed for sale at the end of July 2025, up 10.1 per cent from a year earlier, according to CREA. That is in line with the long-term average for that time of the year, the association said in its report.

At the same time, the national average home price (non-seasonally adjusted) was $672,784 in July, just 0.6 per cent higher thana year prior.

Updated Fri, Aug 15 20259:34 AM EDT

S&P 500 and Dow hit record highs, head for big weekly gain after solid retail sales data: Live updates

The S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average rose to record highs Friday, boosted by retail sales data pointing to a strong consumer, as Wall Street looked to wrap up another week of gains.

The broad market index climbed 0.1%, while the 30-stock Dow advanced 200 points, or 0.4%. Aiding the Dow was a 12% surge in UnitedHealth after Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway and Michael Burry’s Scion Asset Management revealed they bought stock in the insurance giant during the second quarter. The Nasdaq Composite was flat.

July’s retail sales data, released on Friday morning, painted a still-healthy picture for the U.S. consumer. Retail sales rose 0.5% last month, meeting expectations from the Dow Jones consensus. Retail sales excluding automobiles gained 0.3%, also matching estimates.

For the week, the major averages were headed for solid gains. The Dow, S&P 500 and Nasdaq gained more than 1% week to date as of Thursday’s close, thanks to new consumer inflation data that raised hopes for a Federal Reserve rate cut next month.

Those expectations took a hit on Thursday, however, after a much hotter-than-expected wholesale inflation report. Stocks initially fell during the session but managed to recover most of their losses, with the S&P 500 eking out a fresh record closing high.

“I don’t think that one data point is enough to change a thesis around the trajectory of inflation,” said Tom Lee, head of research at Fundstrat Global Advisors. “Our base case remains that this is going to ultimately be viewed as transitory by the market.”

Intel gained more than 3% following a Bloomberg report that the Trump administration is in discussions to have the U.S. government take a stake.

• The producer price index jumped 0.9% in July, compared with the Dow Jones estimate for a 0.2% gain. It was the biggest monthly increase since June 2022.
• Excluding food and energy prices, the core PPI rose 0.9% against the forecast for 0.3%. Excluding food, energy and trade services, the index was up 0.6%, the biggest gain since March 2022.
• Following the release, market-implied odds of a September cut decreased but only slightly, according to the CME Group’s FedWatch tool.

https://www.cnbc.com/2025/08/14/ppi-inflation-report-july-2025-.html

Crude oil inventories in the U.S. unexpectedly increased by the week ended August 8th, according to a report released by the Energy Information Administration on Wednesday.

The EIA said crude oil inventories rose by 3.0 million last week after falling by 3.0 million barrels in the previous week. Economists had expected crude oil inventories to dip by 0.8 million barrels.

At 426.7 million barrels, U.S. crude oil inventories remain about 6 percent below the five-year average for this time of year, the report said.

The report said distillate fuel inventories, which include heating oil and diesel, also crept up by0.7 million barrels last week but remain about 15 percent below the five-year average for this time of year.

Meanwhile, the EIA said gasoline inventories slipped by 0.8 million barrels last week and are at the five-year average for this time of year.

Metro Inc. reported a third-quarter profit of $323.0-million, up from $296.2-million in the same quarter last year.

The grocery and drugstore retailer says its profit amounted to $1.48 per diluted share for the 16-week period ended July 5, up from $1.31 per diluted share a year ago.

Sales for the quarter rose 3.3 per cent year-over-year to $6.87-billion, up from $6.65-billion in the same quarter last year. The Street had projected $6.92-billion.

Metro chief executive Eric La Flèche says the results were marked by solid comparable sales growth in food and pharmacy, and good cost control.

Food same-store sales were up 1.9 per cent, while pharmacy same-store sales were up 5.5 per cent, with a 6.2-per-cent increase in prescription drugs and a 4.0 per cent increase in front-store sales, primarily driven by over-the-counter products, cosmetics, and health and beauty.

On an adjusted basis, Metro says it earned $1.52 per diluted share in its latest quarter, rising 12.6 per cent year-over-year (from $1.35). That fell a penny short of expectations on the Street.

With files from Reuters

Gildan Activewear has agreed to buy U.S. undergarments maker Hanesbrands for $2.2 billion in cash and stock, the companies said on Wednesday, as the Canadian firm looks to expand its foothold in basic apparel.

Gildan, whose brands include Anvil, Gildan and Gold Toe, will pay about $6 per Hanesbrands share, representing a 24% premium to Monday’s close and implying an equity value of $2.2 billion.

Shares of Hanesbrands fell 2.4% in premarket trading after surging as much as 40% a day earlier, when news of the buyout first emerged.

The deal combines Hanesbrands’ branded retail foothold through its popular brands such as Hanes, Bonds, Maidenform and Playtex with Gildan’s strong wholesale market presence across the United States, Canada, Latin America, Asia-Pacific and Europe.

“The combination of these two large manufacturers… makes sense on paper,” Citigroup analysts said after news of the takeover, adding that Gildan could manage Hanesbrands’ business more efficiently, given its expertise in low-cost manufacturing.

The Financial Times first reported on the potential deal on Tuesday, followed by other media outlets, including Reuters.

The deal caps a turbulent chapter for Hanesbrands that was marked by years of underinvestment, heavy debt and a string of acquisitions that produced mixed results since its spinoff from conglomerate Sara Lee in 2006.

Hanesbrands’ sales have plunged over the last three years amid stiff competition in the athleisure market and cooling demand, but cost-reduction efforts and supply-chain improvements lifted its margins in the past year.

In a move to focus on its core categories, Hanesbrands has steadily offloaded assets, including selling its sportswear brand Champion to Authentic Brands in a $1.2 billion deal last year.

Gildan said it intends to initiate a review of strategic alternatives for Hanesbrands Australia, which could include a sale or other transaction, after the deal closes.

The transaction is expected to close in late 2025 or early 2026 and is likely to be immediately accretive to adjusted profit per share.

Barrick Mining Corp. ABX-T +2.97%increase is taking a writedown of more than a billion dollars on its Malian operations, as a dispute that shut down its biggest African mine shows few signs of a resolution.

Toronto-based Barrick said in a Monday release accompanying its second-quarter results that it reduced the carrying value of its 80-per-cent share in the Loulo-Gounkoto complex by US$1.035-billion.

In June, a Mali court gave the west African country permission to seize operational control of the site. In the months before, relations between the big Canadian gold miner and Mali had been steadily deteriorating.

Mali, which has been ruled by a military government since a 2021 coup, demanded a much bigger share of the profits from Loulo-Gounkoto in 2024, after the introduction of a new mining code. As Barrick pushed back, Mali piled on the pressure, jailing four of the company’s executives, blocking exports and seizing bullion from the site. Barrick late last year sought international arbitration and in January shut down the mine.

The loss of the revenue from Loulo-Gounkoto has left a significant hole in Barrick’s finances. When it was in operation, the mine accounted for about 15 per cent of the company’s production.

Mali court orders Barrick operations to be handed over to provisional administrator

Despite a relentless chain of negative developments in Mali, Barrick chief executive Mark Bristow says the company hasn’t reached the end of the road yet with the junta government, and he remains hopeful that a deal can be reached.

“We’re not at that stage where we don’t believe that we can’t find a resolution,” Mr. Bristow said during a conference call with analysts on Monday.

“When you’re engaging and talking, there’s always an opportunity.”

Barrick is no stranger to protracted negotiations with hostile host countries, and while most have eventually been solved, the company has incurred a steep cost owing to many years of lost production.

It took the company the best part of a decade to find a workable solution with Pakistan after a falling out in 2011. Disputes with Tanzania and Papua New Guinea also took several years to resolve.

Barrick inherited its Malian operations after it bought Randgold Resources Ltd. in 2019. The acquisition also saw Mr. Bristow, Randgold’s founder, take over as Barrick’s CEO.

Barrick asks Mali to resume talks over mining dispute as court decision over control looms

Mr. Bristow said that the company is engaging with Mali through treaty programs established betweenthe country and Canada, through its Malian legal counsel and through executives still on the ground.

Shares in Barrick fell by 2.4 per cent in trading on the Toronto Stock Exchange, closing at $31.46 apiece.

With uncertainty clouding the company’s future in Mali, Barrick is forging ahead with the development of its Reko Diq project in Pakistan, another jurisdiction that investors have concerns about. The copper and gold project will be constructed in two phases, with Barrick needing to invest around US$5-billion. The company is currently seeking a US$3-billion financing package.

Barrick has been steadily building a war chest for Reko Diq. Earlier this year, the company sold its 50-per-cent stake in the Donlin gold project in Alaska for US$1-billion.

Barrick earlier this year also put its Hemlo gold mine in Ontario up for sale, deeming it an asset not big enough to move the needle. After a failed attempt to sell the mine once before, Barrick invested a significant amount back into the operation in the years since Mr. Bristow joined, something that should help it fetch an attractive valuation.

“We invested quite a lot into Hemlo,to reestablish it as a viable operation,” Mr. Bristow said in Monday’s call. “And as we’ve seen, there’s a real appetite for these types of mines.”

Late last year, Denver-based Newmont Corp. sold its Musselwhite mine in Ontario to Vancouver-based Orla Mining Ltd. for around US$850-million.

The world’s biggest mining companies are streamlining their portfolios to zero in on their biggest and most profitable operations, and cashing out during a time of near-record high gold prices.

Canada’s canola industry is facing steep losses and urging Ottawa to compensate farmers after Beijing announced a 75.8-per-cent preliminary duty on Canadian canola seed.

The Tuesday morning announcement comes toward the end of a one-year anti-dumping probe launched by China in September. Canada’s agricultural sector has benefited from extensive government subsidies and preferential policies that distort markets, said an announcement from China’s Ministry of Commerce on Tuesday.

But Beijing’s actions are not about dumping and effectively cut off Canada’s most lucrative crop from one of its most important markets weeks before harvest, say many in the sector.

Canadian canola is exported in accordance with rules based trade and fair market access, said Chris Davidson, President of Canola Council of Canada. Beijing’s tariffs are instead a “political issue that needs a political resolution,” he said.

The anti-dumping investigation came after Ottawa imposed 100-per-cent tariffs on Chinese-made electric vehicles and 25-per-cent tariffs on Chinese steel and aluminum. Beijing imposed 100-per-cent tariffs on meal and oil in March as retaliation for Ottawa’s tariffs. Now all three canola products – meal, seed and oil – are facing Chinese tariffs.

“There are geopolitical forces and we seem to be getting side-swiped,” said Dale Leftwich, Policy Manager at SaskOilseeds, adding that farmers feel like “collateral damage.”

“This is fairly devastating right now,” said Alberta farmer Roger Chevraux. His crop is around three weeks away from harvest and it lost $90,000 in value after markets reacted and the price per bushel dropped by $1.

Mr. Chevraux will try to hold onto the crop until prices improve. But storage space is limited and September is an expensive time of year. Costs like fuel from running harvest machinery and the bill for fertilizer might force a number of farmers to take a low price. The price could also fall lower.

“We need a return to rules based trade all the way around the world … We need normal trade we can rely on.”

In the meantime, Mr. Chevraux would like to see Ottawa offer compensation.

“They’re willing to support other industries in Canada. I sure hope they don’t forget about us.”

Valued at $4-billion in annual exports, China is the largest market for Canadian canola seed. It is also the largest vegetable oil consumer in the world, with an annual consumption of 38.3 mmt.

The product set for China cannot be easily move elsewhere.

There have been some promising developments in Ottawa’s relationship with China, said Mr. Davidson. In early June, Canada and China trade ministers committed to convening the Joint Economic and Trade Commission.

“We will be looking for the government to double down on those efforts moving forward.”