“It was as though the cathedral demanded, and received, a perpetual, living sacrifice. It towered over the town, more like an affliction than a blessing, and made everything seem, by comparison with itself, wretched and makeshift indeed” -- James Baldwin, Another Country

Chartres Cathedral was consecrated on this day in the presence of King Louis IX of France, about 80 kilometres southwest of Paris. The beautifully preserved building, which still has most of original stained glass windows, was designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO as a "masterpiece.” The 130-metre-long cathedral had a few narrow escapes. During the French Revolution,  plans to blow it up are said to have been thwarted when a local architect warned that the rubble  would clog streets for years. And American officer Welborn Barton Griffith saved the building from shelling in August 1944 when he searched the cathedral, and climbed to the top of its bell tower, finding no Germans. He was killed later that day.

ALL EYES ON CETA 

We’re thinking big on BNN this morning as we focus on efforts to save the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) deal between Canada and the European Union that would end duties on tens of thousands of products. Frustratingly, the pact has been stalled by Belgium’s Wallonia region of 3.5 million people. Wallonia’s concerns reportedly include a section that allows foreign investors to sue countries and beef imports. We had an update this morning at 7:45 a.m. ET from McCarthy Tetrault trade lawyer Simon Potter, who told us the Belgian region’s fears are misplaced.

M&A FRENZY

We’re also all over the big merger news. TD Ameritrade Holding Corp (AMTD.O) is teaming up with Toronto-Dominion Bank (TD.TO) to buy Scottrade Financial Services in a US$4-billion deal to create a discount brokerage empire. At 12 p.m. ET we’ll be joined by Patrick Horan, principal at Agilith Capital, who says the merger offers enormous synergies.

And we’re tracking political angles in the proposed US$85-billion takeover of Time Warner Inc (TWX.N) by AT&T (T.N).

"AT&T, the original and abusive 'Ma Bell' telephone monopoly, is now trying to buy Time Warner and thus the wildly anti-Trump CNN,” Donald Trump economic adviser Peter Navarro says. “Donald Trump would never approve such a deal because it concentrates too much power in the hands of the too and powerful few."  

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Are You a Financial Advisor?

As we approach the final months of 2016, BNN’s Catherine Murray looks at some of the best ways to utilize TFSAs and RRSPs - and the tax implications that are making the TFSA extremely popular among high-net-worth clients.

Compensating advisors for selling mutual funds and ETFs

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Explaining life cycle investing to clients

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ALSO ON BNN

At 10:35 a.m. ET, we'll be joined by Jonathan Tepperman, author "The Fix: How Nations Survive and Thrive in a World in Decline." The book is billed as an antidote to “the hand-wringing and grim prognostication that dominates the news, making a data-driven case for optimism in a time of crushing pessimism.” The managing editor of foreign affairs at the Wall Street Journal cites examples of government initiatives that tackled intractable problems and says they illustrate solutions to “immigration reform, economic stagnation, political gridlock, corruption and Islamist extremism.”

At  3:30 p.m. ET, we talk to Michael  Winston, renowned whistle-blower on abuses at mortgage lender Countrywide Financial. He says the current scandal over bogus accounts at Wells Fargo (WFC.N), demonstrates that Wall Street is still free to ignore regulations.

And investors in natural gas stocks won’t want to miss Commodities: At 11:40 a.m. ET, we’ll hear from  Michael Schlacter, chief meteorologist at Weather 2000, a service that advises the commodity and insurance sectors.

Finally, Shakespeare fans are agog at news that Christopher Marlowe is to receive a credit as co-writer of Shakespeares three Henry VI plays. The Guardian says “the two dramatists will appear jointly on each of the three title pages of the plays within the New Oxford Shakespeare, a landmark project to be published by Oxford University Press this month.”

The circumstances of Marlowe’s death in 1593 are unclear but may have involved a row over  "the reckyninge" (the bill) for a meal.

Can’t stand a fellow who won’t stand his round. 

Every morning Commodities host Andrew Bell writes a ‘chase note’ to BNN's editorial staff listing the stories and events that will be in the spotlight that day. Have it delivered to your inbox before the trading day begins by heading to www.bnn.ca/subscribe.