Countries worldwide have been increasingly imposing tariffs on China’s tech industry to address concerns over economic dependence, national security, and market fairness. https://www.zerohedge.com/economics/which-countries-are-putting-tariffs-chinas-tech

(Bloomberg) -- The Bank of Canada made its second straight outsize cut in interest rates and signalled policymakers are ready to slow down monetary easing. Officials led by Governor Tiff Macklem lowered the benchmark overnight rate by 50 basis points to 3.25% on Wednesday, bringing borrowing costs to the top end of the range of their estimate for the neutral rate — a level that’s neither restrictive nor stimulative for the economy. https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/business/economics/1970/01/01/bank-of-canada-cuts-key-interest-rate-by-50-bps-to-325/

One economist says she expects the Bank of Canada to lower its key interest rate by 50 basis points (bps) on Wednesday as the bank continues to shift its focus away from inflation concerns toward stimulating a slowing economy. Citi’s Veronica Clark told BNN Bloomberg that her call for a jumbo rate cut from the central bank has not changed since its last meeting, when it lowered rates by 50 bps after three straight 25-bps cuts. “We are expecting a 50-bps cut on Wednesday, that was my call really after the October meeting when we saw a similarly large 50-bps cut,” she said in a Monday interview. https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/business/economics/2024/12/09/restrictive-rates-no-longer-needed-expect-50-bps-cut-from-boc-economist/

Trudeau says Canada ‘will respond’ if Trump imposes 25% tariffs (Bloomberg) -- Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Canada “will respond” if US President-elect Donald Trump imposes new tariffs on Canadian imports, and argued that retaliatory tariffs were successful when Trump put tariffs on Canadian steel and aluminum in 2018. Trump has threatened to impose across-the-board 25% tariffs on Canadian and Mexican imports on the first day of his presidency unless both countries crack down on the flow of migrants and fentanyl into the US. https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/business/economics/2024/12/09/trudeau-says-canada-will-respond-if-trump-imposes-25-tariffs/

Canada’s unemployment rate jumped to 6.8 per cent last month as more people looked for work in a weakening job market. Statistics Canada’s November labour force survey says the jobless rate last month reached the highest since January 2017, outside of the COVID-19 pandemic. https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/business/economics/2024/12/06/canadas-jobless-rate-reaches-68-in-november/

What began as a special military operation has turned into the start of the next world war, and Russia is paying heavily. Russian President Vladimir Putin passed a new budget over the weekend that will allocate 32.5% of the total budget (13.5 trillion rubles) for FY25 to defense spending, which accounts for 6.2% of total GDP. https://www.armstrongeconomics.com/world-news/war/russia-raises-military-budget-for-next-three-years/

Good news. Canada prevented the mortgage cliff that would have seen existing borrowers pay more. The bad news? The rapid rate cuts and extended amortizations are only expected to help new buyers for a few weeks before further affordability erosion. That was the take in a new report from Oxford Economics, who doesn’t see affordability returning until 2035. https://betterdwelling.com/canadian-mortgage-rates-to-rise-housing-unaffordable-until-2035-oxford-econ/

Bank of Canada deputy governor Rhys Mendes says allowing for a period of price declines may sound tempting, but it would ultimately be more painful for Canadians. His speech comes as the Bank of Canada declares victory on high inflation, but Canadians remain dissatisfied with higher prices across the economy. The Liberal government has worn much of the political blame for higher prices, to the advantage of the federal Conservatives. On Thursday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau unveiled a plan to give a two-month GST break on a slew of items starting Dec. 14 to help with the affordability crunch. The federal government is also sending out $250 cheques to Canadians who worked in 2023 and earned up to $150,000. https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/business/economics/2024/11/26/allowing-a-period-of-price-declines-would-be-painful-for-canadians-boc-official/

One day after President-elect Trump pledged to slap a 25% tariff on all goods coming from Mexico and Canada until they tighten border security, and an extra 10% on China until the CCP cracks down on fentanyl smuggling, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum - a leftist ideologue trained in radical student protest movements - lashed out. https://www.zerohedge.com/economics/mexico-threatens-trump-counter-tariffs-china-cries-foul

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will be convening a meeting of all of Canada’s premiers “this week” to discuss U.S. president-elect Donald Trump’s intent to impose a 25 per cent tariff on all products from Canada and Mexico on his first day in office, if border issues aren’t addressed. “One of the really important things is that we be all pulling together on this. The Team Canada approach is what works,” Trudeau said, reacting to the major trade threat on his way in to Tuesday’s closed-door cabinet meeting on Parliament Hill. The Prime Minister’s Office has confirmed the meeting will be held virtually, on Wednesday, at 5 p.m. EST. https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/business/economics/2024/11/26/trudeau-confirms-premiers-meeting-this-week-after-trumps-canadian-tariff-threat/