HEADLINES

Manufacturing Sales Rose For Fifth Straight Month in June

Factory sales in Canada climbed in June for a fifth straight month-over-month gain, adding to momentum that could deliver second-quarter growth well above the Bank of Canada's original estimate.

Manufacturing shipments rose 0.1% from the prior month to a seasonally adjusted C$78.82 billion, Statistics Canada said. Traders anticipated a 0.1% decline, according to economists at Bank of Nova Scotia. On a volume, or price-adjusted, basis, factory sales rose 1.2%.

On a 12-month basis, sales climbed 14.5%.

Statistics Canada also revised its May data to indicate shipments rose by a faster 1.6%, versus the earlier estimate of a 1.3% gain.

Core Wholesale Trade Rose 2.8% in June

Saputo Sells U.K. Dairy Unit to France's Lactalis in GBP988 Million Deal

Canadian dairy products company Saputo is exiting the U.K. market entirely, striking a deal to sell its dairy operations to French dairy conglomerate Lactalis for an enterprise value of about 988 million British pounds.

The divestment includes five U.K. manufacturing facilities as well as a slate of household brands, including Cathedral City, Wensleydale, Davidstow, Clover and Country Life.

Together, the brands generated roughly C$1.2 billion in revenues over the last four quarters, Saputo said, which represents about 7% of the company's total.

Canada Union Says Stellantis Eyeing Sale of Toronto-Area Plant

The union representing Canada's auto workers says Stellantis has disclosed its intention to sell a Toronto-area factory that's been the focus of a dispute between Ottawa and the auto maker.

Lana Payne, president of Unifor, said Stellantis informed the union this week it is considering closing the factory and selling the plant. The facility in Brampton, Ontario has been closed since 2024 for retooling, to prepare for the production of a next-generation Jeep Compass starting in early 2026. Governments in Canada contributed hundreds of millions of dollars to Stellantis to help modernize its factories in Brampton and Windsor, Ontario.

Stellantis last year said it would shift manufacturing to Illinois, as pressure mounted from President Trump for car companies to shift operations to the U.S.

CPP Investment Board Net Assets Surpass C$800 Billion Mark

Canada Pension Plan Investment Board said its net assets under management exceeded the C$800 billion threshold in the first quarter of FY2027, buoyed by a strong performance from its equities portfolio.

Canada's biggest pension fund, and one of the world's largest, said it now has C$863 billion in net assets under management, an increase from C$793.3 billion in the previous quarter. CPPIB said the results are as of June 30, or first quarter of its FY2027.

In the first quarter, CPPIB recorded a net return of 7.5%, which CEO John Graham said was one of the best quarterly performances in over a decade.

Americas Gold & Silver Second-Quarter Loss Narrows, Revenue Rises

Americas Gold & Silver's second-quarter loss narrowed as revenue rose, while shutdowns at its Idaho operations dragged on production.

Shares rose nearly 3% to C$7.27.

The Toronto-based silver miner reported a net loss of $5 million, or two cents a share, compared with a loss of $15 million, or six cents a share, in the comparable quarter a year ago.

The company said higher foreign-exchange losses, as well as higher loss on derivatives and increased taxes in the quarter, offset the rise in revenue and gain on fair value of metals contract liabilities.

Dynacor Group Shares Fall as Second-Quarter Profit Falls on Gold Slump, Tax Dispute

Dynacor Group shares fell after a sharp drop in gold prices paired with an impending tax dispute in Peru triggered a decline in net income in the second quarter.

Shares fell 9.2% to C$6.00.

The Montreal-based ore processing company late Thursday said the combination of gold's sustained decline coupled with an inventory build-up led to a longer inventory turnover, which affected its performance in the quarter.

High Liner Shares Rise as Higher Pricing, Demand Growth Drive Second-Quarter Beat

High Liner Foods shares advanced after the company reported second-quarter sales growth as price increases and expanding government contracts helped offset a warehouse fire that dragged on profit.

Shares trading in Toronto rose 7.5% to C$15.42.

The Lunenburg, Nova Scotia-based frozen seafood processor and distributor late Thursday reported a 12% increase in sales to $269.3 million, topping analyst forecasts of $262.8 million, according to FactSet.

Canopy Growth Secures EU GMP Recertification for Ontario Facility

Canopy Growth has renewed its European Union certification for its main cultivation facility in Ontario, a key supply link to its expanding European medical cannabis market.

The cannabis company said that it has successfully renewed its EU Good Manufacturing Practice Certification, or EU GMP, for the Kincardine facility.

Kincardine is the anchor asset of Canopy Growth's complete end-to-end EU GMP flower supply chain, which links its Canadian cultivated flower to the European distribution network through the company's facility in Sankt Leon-Rot in Germany.

TALKING POINT

Canada and U.S. Discuss Critical Minerals and Defense in Trade Talks, Sources Say

By Adrian Morrow of The Globe and Mail

Canada and the U.S. have discussed critical minerals and defense in their continuing trade talks, and progress on those areas is expected to influence a trade deal the two sides are aiming to close next week, according to three Canadian and one U.S. source with knowledge of the negotiations.

The plan is still to conclude a "phase one" deal in which Canada would receive reductions in President Donald Trump's tariffs in exchange for conceding on a list of U.S. trade demands, before later dealing in detail with critical minerals and defense.

But Canada's willingness to work with the U.S. on those areas, and potentially offer tacit agreement on some of its demands, could influence the contours of the first-phase deal, the sources said. Ottawa is hoping to conclude the agreement before Trump's latest threatened round of tariffs begins on Aug. 19, in the hopes of preventing their imposition.

The U.S. is demanding a right of first refusal on Canadian critical minerals, that Canada complete its purchase of U.S. F-35 fighter jets, that Ottawa buy U.S. tech such as radar planes as part of joining Trump's planned Golden Dome missile defense system, and that Washington receive some guarantee on future supplies of oil and gas, one Canadian and one U.S. source said.

The Globe and Mail is not identifying the sources because they were not authorized to speak publicly about the closed-door talks.

Dominic LeBlanc, the minister responsible for Canada-U.S. trade, and Janice Charette, Canada's chief trade negotiator, remained in Washington on Friday. They were scheduled to brief provincial and territorial trade ministers and the federal government's Canada-U.S. relations advisory committee in the afternoon, LeBlanc's office said.

U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, who met with LeBlanc and Charette for 90 minutes at his office near the White House on Thursday, spent the day at the Iowa State Fair.

Speaking with reporters there, he said he'd had "very detailed discussions" with his Canadian counterparts.

"We're having what I call constructive negotiations with the Canadians. At the end of the day, President Trump, the United States, we're going to do what is best for America," he said, adding that "for decades, we've had major trade issues with Canada."

One of the Canadian sources said the Thursday meeting went well and there was optimism for a deal. The source said that it did not appear, however, that Trump was being apprised of every development at the negotiating table, which left the possibility that he would scupper an agreement or make additional demands.

The deal under discussion would see Trump lower - but not fully get rid of - his tariffs on Canadian steel, aluminum, autos and forest products, as well as refrain from hitting more products with tariffs on Aug. 19.

In exchange, Canada would eliminate its retaliatory tariffs on U.S. autos, agree to Washington's interpretation of how dairy quotas should be allocated, and have provincial governments stop their Buy Canadian programs and boycotts of American alcohol, among other things.

U.S. demands for "phase two" of the talks have loomed over the negotiations, the sources said.

The U.S. source said one possibility is Canada making a quiet, informal pledge to complete the F-35 purchase with the formal announcement held back until a second-phase deal. One Canadian source said Ottawa might bargain its willingness to fulfill U.S. demands on critical minerals in a future deal for lower tariff numbers in this agreement.

Another Canadian source said Ottawa's officials had discussed making a pitch on critical minerals and defense as part of a closing offer to get the deal over the finish line.

Prime Minister Mark Carney last year promised to seek a grand bargain with Trump covering trade, defense and border security. His original hope was to entirely get rid of U.S. tariffs imposed under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act.

But Trump walked away from talks last October over an Ontario government antitariff ad. Negotiations resumed in the spring but made little headway.

Only last month, when Trump announced 50% tariffs on US$20 billion worth of Canadian electronics, dairy, alcohol and other products, using Section 338 of the Smoot-Hawley Act, did talks begin in earnest.

LeBlanc and Charette have met with Greer four times in the past three weeks and have teams of negotiators and experts staying in Washington as long as talks continue.

Carney has already made concessions to Trump away from the bargaining table without receiving anything in return, ramping up the pressure to land a deal that would lessen the economic pain the U.S. is inflicting on Canada. The Prime Minister cancelled a planned digital service tax, rolled back a requirement for streaming companies to fund Canadian content creators and agreed to share toll revenue from the Gordie Howe International Bridge, even though Canada paid the entire cost of building it, all at Trump's behest.

Another complication is that Ottawa will need provincial co-operation to make a deal happen, as ending the alcohol boycotts is one of the key demands.

"We need a deal that takes into account our steel industry, our manufacturers, our auto sector, our lumber and derivate products. So we need to see a good deal, a fair deal, a hard-driven negotiated deal, " Ontario Finance Minister Peter Bethlenfalvy told reporters at Queen's Park on Friday.

"I will say this: that alcohol remains a tool that we have in response to these tariffs, and we're resolute in our belief that they should remain off the shelves until and unless we reach that type of deal that I just described."

Expected Major Events for Monday

04:30/JPN: Jun Revised Retail Sales

04:30/JPN: Jun Revised Industrial Production

04:30/JPN: Jun Tertiary Industry Index

08:30/UK: S&P Global UK Consumer Sentiment Index

12:30/CAN: Jun New motor vehicle sales

12:30/US: Aug Empire State Manufacturing Survey

12:30/CAN: Jun International transactions in securities

12:30/CAN: Jul CPI

14:00/US: Aug NAHB Housing Market Index

20:00/US: Jun Treasury International Capital Data

All times in GMT. Powered by Onclusive and Dow Jones.

Expected Earnings for Monday AI Financial Corp (AIFC) is expected to report for 2Q.

California First Leasing Corp (CFNB) is expected to report for 4Q.

Cenntro Inc $(CENN)$ is expected to report for 2Q.

Clairvest Group Inc (CVG.T) is expected to report for 1Q.

Cue Biopharma Inc (CUE) is expected to report for 2Q.

DocGo Inc $(DCGO)$ is expected to report $-0.10 for 2Q.

Flexsteel Industries Inc $(FLXS)$ is expected to report $1.09 for 4Q.

Focus Universal Inc (FCUV) is expected to report for 2Q.

Nu Ride Inc (NRDE) is expected to report for 2Q.

Precipio Inc $(PRPO)$ is expected to report for 2Q.

Star Diamond Corp (DIAM.T) is expected to report for 2Q.

Starfighters Space Inc (FJET) is expected to report for 2Q.

VOC Energy Trust $(VOC)$ is expected to report for 2Q.

VirnetX Holding Corp (VHC) is expected to report for 2Q.

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This article is a text version of a Wall Street Journal newsletter published earlier today.