Dec 28, 2017
BNN's Daily Chase: Investors pile into cannabis stocks; Canadians prioritize paying down debt
By Noah Zivitz
Canada's bellwether for the cannabis sector helped power the TSX to a record close yesterday. Canopy Growth shot up 20 per cent, building on gains that have seen its stock rise more than 50 per cent this month alone. Investor hopes are riding high ahead of recreational legalization next year. BNN's Jameson Berkow will delve into Canopy's memorable year, and why some investment professionals are still wary of the sector.
CANADIANS TALKING A GOOD GAME ON DEBT
A new CIBC survey shows a quarter of Canadians say paying down debt is their top personal finance priority for 2018. As it has been for the previous seven years. And we know how well that's been working out for households in this country. So is there any reason to believe next year will be different? We'll address that with CIBC's Jamie Golombek at 10:10 a.m. ET.
A WHOLE OTHER KIND OF HOUSE MONEY
Would you accept bitcoin as currency for a home sale? Turns out that’s exactly what happening in San Francisco. We’ve got an ABC report on multi-million-dollar homes for sale that are crypto-friendly. We’ll make some calls to find out if this practice could come to Canada. And how buyers and sellers intend to account for bitcoin’s violent day-to-day swings is anyone’s guess. To wit: the most prominent cryptocurrency fell almost nine per cent in early trading Thursday after South Korea intervened to curb “irrationally overheated” speculation.
OTHER NOTABLE STORIES:
-Bombardier's transport division has won another order. Today it's a locomotives and maintenance contract from TK Logistik worth 250-million euros ($376 million) at list price.
-A new Angus Reid poll shows 60 per cent of Ontarians support the province's plan to raise minimum wage to $15/hour in 2019.
-With the PotashCorp-Agrium merge set to close next month (get used to Nutrien Ltd.), S&P Dow Jones Indices announced late yesterday Open Text will take Agrium’s spot in the TSX 60 index.
-Charges have been laid against Nexen as a result of an explosion last year in Alberta that killed two workers.
-No shame in acknowledging news that was missed late on the Friday before Christmas. Imperial Oil disclosed on the evening on Dec. 22 that the plug is officially being pulled on the more than decade-long Mackenzie Valley pipeline proposal.
NOTABLE RELEASES/EVENTS
-Notable data: U.S. energy inventories (11:00 a.m. ET)
Every morning BNN's Managing Editor Noah Zivitz 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.
