The Canadian dollar is fighting to find a floor, falling as low as 76.19 US this morning before breaking into positive territory around 6:00 a.m. ET. And now currency traders have two days to anticipate the next obvious catalyst -- with Jerome Powell set to preside over his first rate decision as chair of the U.S. Federal Reserve on Wednesday, when he’ll have a golden opportunity to underscore the diverging outlook for the Fed and Bank of Canada. 

BITCOIN'S RELIEF RALLY

After falling as low as US$7,386 per coin, bitcoin is back above US$8,000 – seemingly thanks to Mark Carney. “The Financial Stability Board’s initial assessment is that crypto-assets do not pose risks to global financial stability at this time,” he wrote in a letter to G20 finance ministers and central bankers, who are meeting in Buenos Aires with trade presumably first and foremost on the agenda.

CANNABIS REGULATION

Today we’ll find out what Canadians had to say about the government’s plan for rules that will be applied to legal recreational cannabis. Recall the Liberals launched a public consultation period in November after they revealed a regulatory blueprint that included restrictions on how pot can be packaged. The health minister and Bill Blair will speak to the media at 3:15 p.m. ET after a technical briefing at 1:30 p.m. ET. We’ll try to line up industry reaction this afternoon.

OTHER NOTABLE STORIES:

-Hecla is buying Nevada-based gold producer Klondex Mines 

-A new Angus Reid Institute Poll indicates Andrew Scheer "would be in range" to lead the Conservatives to a majority government if an election were held tomorrow, with 56 per cent of respondents saying they disapprove of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.  

-Reuters is reporting the European Commission - which has a history of going after American tech giants - has indicated it's got an eye on Facebook amid a simmering scandal over how the personal information of more than 50 million users was leveraged for political purposes.

-Canopy Growth made it clear today that it's perfectly content leaving its relationship with Spain's Alcaliber as a partnership, rather than going for a takeover as recently reported. "Canopy Growth ... wishes to clarify that, contrary to certain speculation, the Company is not in negotiations to acquire Alcaliber," it said in a release.

-The federal, Ontario and Quebec governments are promising a “major investment” in 5G this morning, with The Globe and Mail reporting the financing will allow small businesses to test the next-generation technology.  

-Sleuthing by The Canadian Press has uncovered some evidence that Russian trolls have targeted Justin Trudeau and Canadian oil  

-Sky News is reporting Twitter will soon join Google in banning cryptocurrency ads

NOTABLE RELEASES/EVENTS

-Notable earnings: Oracle

-9:30 a.m. ET: Federal, Ontario and Quebec government to announce "major investment" in 5G technology in Ottawa

-1000 a.m. ET: Transport Minister Marc Garneau and Via Rail CEO Yves Desjardins-Siciliano make announcement in Etobicoke on Via’s fleet

-12:00 p.m. ET: Ontario government delivers throne speech

-1:00 p.m. ET: Senate Standing Committee on National Security and Defence holds hearing on Bill C-45

-3:15 p.m. ET: Health Minister Ginette Petitpas Taylor and Parliamentary Secretary Bill Blair announce outcome of public consultation on cannabis regulation and hold media avail

-3:30 p.m. ET: House Agriculture Committee holds hearing in Ottawa on grain backlog

-G20 finance ministers and central bankers start two-day meeting in Buenos Aires

-Anti-trust trial on AT&T's proposed US$85.4-billion takeover of Time Warner begins in D.C. district court (And, a reminder about how a BNN interview became a major talking point for everyone involved with this file 

-Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman begins U.S. visit 

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.