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A Fourth of July Surprise?

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Fred Imbert and Thomas Franck of CNBC report stocks rise after better-than-expected jobs report to close out winning week:
Stocks rose on Thursday following a better-than-expected U.S. jobs report as the economy tries to recover from the coronavirus pandemic.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed 92.39 points higher, or 0.4%, at 25,827.36. The Nasdaq Composite hit a record high, climbing 0.5% to 10,207.63. The S&P 500 also gained 0.5% to end the day at 3,130.01. Boeing contributed to the gains, rising 0.6% after the airplane maker completed recertification flights for its grounded 737 Max jet.

Thursday’s gains led to strong weekly performances for the major averages. The Dow rose 3.3% this week and the S&P 500 climbed 4% in the same time period. It was the Dow and S&P 500′s biggest weekly gains since June 5. The Nasdaq posited its best weekly performance since May 8, jumping 4.6% this week. U.S. markets will be closed on Friday for the July Fourth holiday.

Record jobs g…
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Canada's Fragile Housing Market?

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David Kitai of Mortgage Broker News reports on a report that says the Canadian housing market is due for a crash:
A report from an international macroeconomic research firm says that Canada’s economy is headed for a long, difficult period due largely to the effects of COVID-19 and the weaknesses in Canada’s housing market.

The report “Canada on thin ice as it heats up” by Macro Research Board (MRB) partners paints a bleak picture. The report says that Canada has followed global trends in falling into a ‘sudden stop’ recession with high unemployment and a plunge in activity. It says that Canada is more exposed than most economies, however, because of “an unstable real estate bubble and household credit binge.” It says policymakers are putting off the day of reckoning but have run out of ammunition and there is no guarantee they can prevent a housing bust. The report says such a correction will have long-term positive effects in creating more caution among Canadian consumers, the short …
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AIMCo's First Vol Casualties Emerge?

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Last week, Andrew Willis of the Globe and Mail reported that AIMCo parts with executives who oversaw $2.1-billion investing loss:
Alberta’s government-owned investment fund parted company this week with executives responsible for a $2.1-billion loss on trades linked to market volatility, as its board of directors completes an audit and brings in an outside leader.

Alberta Investment Management Corp., known as AIMCo, oversees $119-billion on behalf of 31 clients, including pension plans for health care workers and police officers and the Heritage Savings Trust Fund. In an e-mail to clients on Wednesday, chief executive officer Kevin Uebelein said executive vice-president of public equities Peter Pontikes “is no longer employed with AIMCo.” Separately, AIMCo said portfolio manager David Triska, who ran the volatility-based strategies, also left the Edmonton-based fund manager.

AIMCo did not tell its clients why Mr. Pontikes left after spending 19 years at the Edmonton-based fund manage…
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CDPQ Infra Derailed in Auckland?

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David Burroughs of the International Railway Journal reports the New Zealand government has dropped plans for a two-line light rail network in Auckland after the cabinet could not agree on how the project should be implemented:
The project to open a line between the city centre and Mount Roskill by 2021 was a major promise made by the Labour party before it won the 2017 general election.

Two competing proposals were put forward to construct the City – Mangere and City – North West lines. The first, developed by the Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency, was followed by an unsolicited proposal from NZ Infra, a joint venture between the NZ Super Fund and CDPQ Infra, an arm of a Canadian pension fund Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec.

“Either would have created hundreds of jobs and resulted in an Auckland metro that offered Aucklanders a 30 minute trip from the central business district (CBD) to the airport,” transport minister, Mr Phil Twyford, says.

The Ministry of Transport was taske…
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