HEADLINES
Goods-Trade Deficit Widens to Six-Month High Even as Trade With Non-U.S. Nations Increases
Canada's trade deficit with the world surged to a six-month high as shipments of gold drove imports to record levels, though evidence is growing the country's dependence on the massive U.S. market is easing.
The country recorded a merchandise-trade deficit in February of C$5.74 billion, Statistics Canada said Thursday. That was much larger than the C$2.5 billion shortfall economists anticipated.
Imports jumped 8.4% between January and February to an all-time high of C$72.05 billion as inbound shipments of gold led widespread increases, outpacing a 6.4% rise in exports to C$66.31 billion, the highest since March of last year when the first wave of the Trump administration's tariffs kicked in.
Telecom Stocks Drop as TD Cowen Downgrades Sector on Price War Pressures
Canadian telecom stocks slipped after TD Cowen cut its outlook on the sector amid mounting pressure from aggressive mobile-plan pricing.
Shares in Rogers Communication settled nearly 8% lower at C$48.76, while BCE's stock declined 3.4% to C$34.06 and Telus fell 0.7% to C$17.92.
TD Cowen analyst Vince Valentini said Canada's major telecom providers have been cutting mobile plan prices aggressively in the first quarter as slower population growth and tougher competition squeeze the market. But the discounts aren't translating into stronger subscriber gains, he said.
The analyst has downgraded the ratings of Rogers, BCE and Telus to hold from buy. He also lowered their price targets, with Rogers now at C$56 from C$65 previously, BCE to C$37 from C$41, and Telus set to C$19 from its prior $21 target.
Mobile Carriers Ramping Up Pricing Competition Again
Manulife, Sun Life CEOs See Opportunities in China Ahead of Meeting with Vice-Premier
The CEOs of Canadian insurance and asset management companies Manulife and Sun Life both say they see opportunities for growth in the Chinese market in areas like health care and investment advice as part of Canada's push to diversify its exports.
Sun Life CEO Kevin Strain and Manulife CEO Philip Witherington spoke with The Globe and Mail separately on the sidelines of meetings taking place this week in Beijing, where Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne is leading a delegation of more than a dozen Canadian business leaders as part of a push to boost trade with China.
At 1.4 billion people, China is the world's second-largest economy, after the United States.
"There's a tremendous opportunity for Canadian businesses to grow here and to build new capabilities and to build new client bases," said Mr. Strain.
Plug Power Shares Rise After Winning Design Contract in Canada
Plug Power shares rose 7.1% to $2.41, after the company said it was awarded a front-end engineering design contract to supply a 275 megawatt GenEco PEM electrolyzer system for Hy2gen Canada's Courant project.
The company said the system is one of its largest electrolyzer project awards to date.
Plug Power said Hy2gen is developing the Courant project as one of North America's largest decarbonized ammonium nitrate facilities. Plug's scope includes advanced engineering and system design activities to support electrolyzer integration, plant configuration and performance optimization.
Scotiabank to Buy Back Up to 15 Million Shares
Bank of Nova Scotia has regulatory approval to buy back up to 15 million of shares.
Scotiabank said the new buyback will begin on April 7 and represents about 1.2% of its more than 1.23 billion shares outstanding as of March 24.
The Toronto-based bank, which sports a market capitalization topping C$120 billion, said it shelled out nearly C$1.81 billion to buy back 20 million shares under its most-recent repurchase program.
TALKING POINT
RBC Wealth Management Head Says Ultrahigh-Net-Worth Clients Showing Resilience
By Robb M. Stewart
Royal Bank of Canada's efforts to ramp up its wealth management operations and grow in the U.S. are benefiting from a focus on high- and ultrahigh-net-worth individuals who are less phased by the geopolitical worries that have roiled markets of late.
Neil McLaughlin, group head of RBC's wealth management business, said he is optimistic about where this segment of the big Canadian lender stands and the potential the U.S. continues to offer.
"Obviously all the backdrop we have right now with the volatility creates some uncertainty, but that notwithstanding I think we're feeling very good," McLaughlin said in an interview.
As the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement comes up for renegotiation this year, geopolitics and trade policy are part of every conversation with clients, he said. But with high- and ultrahigh-net-worth clients, the focus is on opportunities rather than defensive positioning.
RBC's wealth management operations in Canada and the U.S. are skewed toward those higher-net-worth individuals, unlike its business in the U.K. which is focused more on mass-affluent clients, those in the upper-middle class. RBC ranks number six in the U.S. by assets under administration, but the bank has ambitions to replicate the success it has had in Canada, where it is positioned as the leading wealth advisory and retail mutual fund company.
High- and ultrahigh-worth clients are anchored financially, don't have near-term liquidity needs that create any excessive angst, and have a longer-term horizon, McLaughlin said. In RBC's other business segments in Canada and in its European business, clients face greater pressure and there are signs people are drawing down liquidity and pivoting into cash to ensure they can make ends meet, he said.
RBC sees the value of its business in North America in helping those high- and ultrahigh-net-worth clients take a long-term view, putting together the right portfolio tailored around the client, and when there is heightened volatility making sure investors aren't overreacting, McLaughlin said. Among ultrawealthy clients, there is an appetite for buying opportunities, and the possibility of using leverage to take advantage of those opportunities, he said.
It has been a year since RBC laid out ambitious growth targets and a goal of leaning on wealth management to get there, and McLaughlin said his team is on track. Those targets include mid-single- digit growth in net new assets and sales annually and assets under administration of C$3.2 trillion to C$3.4 trillion by 2029, after growing to C$2.3 trillion last year. The bank also is aiming to add to its pool of advisors in North America, including hiring more than 600 in the U.S. in the next five years.
Last year was a record year for U.S. recruitment at RBC wealth management, and the segment is off to a strong start in the first quarter, McLaughlin said. The U.S. business also is building out a pipeline of products that when they come to market will help cement the growth trajectory, he added. That has included things such as a mortgage product for U.S. clients, and plans for a credit card focused on ultrahigh-net-worth clients branded for the U.S. wealth management business at the end of this year.
On Wednesday, the U.S. business launched the RBC BlueBay Credit Opportunities Fund, an investment strategy for investors seeking income and total return opportunities that will primarily invest in high-yield corporate bonds, loans, and structured credit.
RBC's broader wealth management segment generated more than $6 billion of revenue in the three months to Jan. 31, roughly a third of its total revenue. Assets under administration were up 13% year-over-year in Canadian wealth management and surpassed C$1 trillion for the first time, while U.S. wealth management was up 12% to $777 billion.
"We feel like we are on the right track with our investor day targets," McLaughlin said. "In Canada and the U.S., for the most part that ultrahigh-net-worth client is more resilient."
Write to Robb M. Stewart at [robb.stewart@wsj.com]
Expected Major Events for Friday
00:30/JPN: Mar Japan Services PMI
06:00/RUS: Mar Russian Services PMI
06:45/FRA: Feb Industrial production index
09:00/ITA: 4Q General Government Quarterly Accounts
12:30/US: Mar U.S. Employment Report
13:45/US: Mar US Services PMI
All times in GMT. Powered by Onclusive and Dow Jones.
Expected Earnings for Friday
Atlantic American Corp $(AAME)$ is expected to report for 4Q.
Atlantic International Corp $(ATLN)$ is expected to report for 4Q.
Bio-Path Holdings Inc $(BPTH)$ is expected to report for 4Q.
Carisma Therapeutics Inc (CARM) is expected to report for 4Q.
DNA X Inc $(SONM)$ is expected to report for 4Q.
Excellon Resources Inc (EXN.T) is expected to report for 4Q.
Mega Matrix Inc (MPU) is expected to report for 4Q.
Noble Romans Inc (NROM) is expected to report for 4Q.
Northwest Biotherapeutics Inc (NWBO) is expected to report for 4Q.
Oncolytics Biotech Inc (ONCY) is expected to report for 4Q.
Quince Therapeutics Inc $(QNCX)$ is expected to report $-0.12 for 4Q.
Regional Health Properties Inc (RHEP) is expected to report for 4Q.
Rubicon Technology Inc (RBCN) is expected to report for 4Q.
Scilex Holding Co $(SCLX)$ is expected to report for 4Q.
Solarmax Technology Inc $(SMXT)$ is expected to report for Full year.
VVT Med Inc (VVTM.V) is expected to report for 4Q.
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(END) Dow Jones Newswires
April 02, 2026 16:29 ET (20:29 GMT)
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