MARKET RECAP at 4 pm ET

Stocks ended in the red on rising fears

about the impact of the coronavirus

epidemic on the global economy. The

benchmark U.S. debt yield hit a

record low as investors focused on

safer bets. The dollar dipped on

growing expectation of a potential

Federal Reserve rate cut. Gold

retreated as traders booked profits. Oil

fell for the third consecutive day as

demand concerns outweighed OPEC

output cuts and Libyan supply losses.

Coming Up

Apple Inc is scheduled to host its

annual meeting with shareholders at

the Steve Jobs Theater in Cupertino.

Lowe's Companies Inc is set to post

higher holiday-quarter same-store

sales for the fourth quarter, boosted by

the home-improvement retailer's

professional and online businesses.

Investors will also be on the lookout for

any impact or supply chain disruptions

from the coronavirus, as well as an

update on its Canadian operations.

Bath & Body Works owner L Brands

Inc is expected to post declines in

revenue and profit for the fourth

quarter, hit by weakness at its lingerie

unit. Investors will be on the lookout for

fiscal 2020 outlook and comments on

its deal to sell Victoria Secret business.

J M Smucker Co is expected to show

a fall in third-quarter profit and revenue,

as the company struggles to grow its

premium pet portfolio against the

strength of General Mills' Blue Buffalo

brand, among others. Investors will

look for commentary on product

innovation, marketing investments and

growth of its coffee business, the

company's second biggest segment.

Wendys Co and Papa John's

International Inc are due to post their

KEY ECONOMIC EVENTS

Building permits R number for Jan 0800 -- 1.551 mln

Building permits R change mm for Jan 0800 -- 9.2%

New home sales-units for Jan 1000 0.710 mln 0.694 mln

New home sales change mm for Jan 1000 3.5% -0.4%

Events ET Poll Prior

STOCKS Close %Chng Yr-high Yr-low Chng

DJIA 27080.01 -880.79 -3.15 29568.57 24680.57

Nasdaq 8965.61 -255.67 -2.77 9838.37 8943.50

S&P 500 3128.3 -97.59 -3.03 3393.52 3214.64

Toronto 17177.37 -385.37 -2.19 17970.51 15891.94

FTSE 7017.88 -138.95 -1.94 7689.67 7114.45

Eurofirst 1576.17 -29.05 -1.81 1691.19 1597.84

Nikkei 22605.41 -781.33 -3.34 24115.95 22775.92

Hang Seng 26893.23 72.35 0.27 29174.92 26145.59

TREASURIES Yield Price

10-year 1.3371 12 /32

2-year 1.2145 3 /32

5-year 1.1672 8 /32

30-year 1.8069 22 /32

FOREX Last % Chng

Euro/Dollar 1.0882 0.28

Dollar/Yen 110.08 -0.57

Sterling/Dollar 1.3002 0.58

Dollar/CAD 1.3292 0.00

TR/HKEX RMB 93.43 -0.17

COMMODITIES ($) Price Chng % chng

Front Month Crude /barrel 49.80 -1.63 -3.17

Spot gold (NY/oz) 1635.06 -25.36 -1.53

Copper U.S. (front month/lb) 0.0260 0.0000 0.08

CRB Index Total Return 178.75 -2.20 -1.21

S&P 500 Price $ Chng % Chng

GAINERS

HP Inc 23.35 1.25 5.66

Xerox Holdings Corp 36.47 1.61 4.62

Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc 442.35 16.97 3.99

LOSERS

American Airlines Group Inc 23.12 -2.33 -9.16

Occidental Petroleum Corp 36.20 -3.29 -8.32

Southwest Airlines Co 49.67 -4.44 -8.21

A file photo of a screen displaying an advertisement for iPhone 11 Pro seen outside an Apple store in Beijing, China October 31, 2019. REUTERS/Florence Lo

2

earnings for the fourth quarter.

Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis

President Neel Kashkari is likely to

speak on "What You May Not Know

About the Minneapolis Federal

Reserve" before the Minneapolis

Downtown Council Business Forum.

Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas

President Robert Kaplan is expected

to speak before the Teacher

Retirement System and Employees

Retirement System of Texas Emerging

Manager Conference in Austin.

Marriott International Inc is expected

to post a rise in fourth-quarter profit

and revenue as the U.S. hotel operator

benefits from higher occupancy and

room rates in the North America

market. Investors will look for updates

on Marriott's financial forecast and

comments around the impact of the

coronavirus impact.

Sales of new U.S. single-family

homes for January are expected to

have risen to 710,000 units, following a

decline to 694,000 in December.

Ford Motor Co's Jim Farley, who was

promoted to chief operating officer on

Feb. 7, is scheduled to speak at a

Wolfe Research conference.

Drugmaker Endo International Plc is

expected to report fourth-quarter

earnings, but investors are expected to

remain focused on comments on

litigation against the company related

to its marketing of opioids. Focus will

also be on the new top management's

strategy to drive growth and clinical

updates on Endo's experimental

treatment for cellulite.

TJX Companies Inc is set to post

higher fourth-quarter revenue and

profit, buoyed by higher demand due to

its deep discounts in the holiday

season. Sourcing disruptions to its

rivals from the coronavirus outbreak

are also expected to benefit the off-

price retailer.

Apache Corp is expected to post a

quarterly loss, as it deferred some

fourth quarter completions activity in

the Alpine High region of West Texas,

and reduced drilling hit by weak natural

gas prices. Investors will look out for

further commentary around Apache's

Permian operations, and plans to move

away from Alpine High, and focus on

more oil-rich areas.

LIVECHAT – EQUITIES WATCH

Reuters stocks correspondents in

London and New York discuss how the

week is playing out on European and

American indices. (0900 ET/1400

GMT) To join the conversation, click

here

Company Name* Quarter ET EPS Estimates** Year Ago Rev Estimates (mln) Smart Estimates

KEY RESULTS

Apache Q4 AMC -$0.04 -$0.06 $0.31 $1,613.57

Universal Health Services Q4 AMC $2.52 $2.57 $2.37 $2,870.70

Ameren Q4 BMO $0.31 $0.31 $0.28 $1,596.24

ANSYS Q4 AMC $2.00 $1.98 $2.13 $469.71

Booking Holdings Q4 16:00 $22.20 $22.04 $22.49 $3,276.18

Crown Castle International Q4 AMC $0.46 $0.48 $0.44 $1,488.93

J M Smucker Co Q3 07:00 $2.24 $2.23 $2.26 $1,971.88

L Brands Q4 AMC $1.86 $1.86 $2.14 $4,690.68

Lowe's Companies Q4 BMO $0.91 $0.91 $0.80 $16,151.39

Marriott International Q4 AMC $1.47 $1.47 $1.44 $5,480.68

NiSource Q4 BMO $0.43 $0.43 $0.38 $1,470.24

Public Service Enterprise Group Q4 BMO $0.61 $0.61 $0.56 $2,682.70

TechnipFMC Q4 AMC $0.43 $0.42 -$0.09 $3,810.09

TJX Companies Q4 BMO $0.77 $0.77 $0.68 $11,830.37

*Includes companies on S&P 500 index. **Estimates may be updated or revised; release times based on company guidance or past practice.

I/B/E/S EPS and revenue estimates, and StarMine Smart Estimates, provided by Refinitiv.

3

The Dow and S&P 500 tumbled in their

fourth straight day of losses as the

coronavirus spread further around the

world and investors offloaded risky

assets as they struggled to gauge the

economic impact. Strategists struggled

to estimate the economic impact of the

virus as it spread to Spain and dozens

of countries from South Korea to Italy

accelerated emergency measures. The

U.S. Centers for Disease Control and

Prevention said Americans should

prepare for possible community spread

of coronavirus. Earlier in the day, Iran's

virus death toll rose to 16, the highest

outside China. The Dow Jones

Industrial Average fell 3.15%, to

27,080.01, the S&P 500 lost 3.03%, to

3,128.3 and the Nasdaq Composite

dropped 2.77%, to 8,965.61.

The 10-year U.S. Treasury note hit a

record low yield as traders kept up the

flight to safety on concerns the

coronavirus epidemic would have a

significant impact on global growth,

coupled with soft U.S. economic data.

The benchmark 10-year yield was

down 6.5 basis points in afternoon

trading at 1.3121%, continuing declines

from Monday and reaching as low as

1.3072%. Yields on other treasuries

were also down, as were major U.S.

stock indexes as investors moved

away from riskier assets. The Treasury

Department sold $40 billion in two year

notes at a high yield of 1.188%. The 2-

year bid-to cover- ratio was 2.45. The

10-year notes were 13/32 higher to

yield 1.33%. 30-year bonds were

23/32 up to yield 1.80%.

The U.S. dollar index weakened as

expectations grew that the Federal

Reserve would cut interest rates this

year to relieve pressure on the

economy caused by China's

coronavirus outbreak. The dollar rose

last week to its highest level in years as

the virus spread further around the

world, with investors regarding all U.S.

assets as safe havens. But the index

has fallen this week as other safe

havens have risen because money

managers now think the Fed may be

more inclined to cut rates since it has

the most room to do so. Rate cuts are

inflationary, lowering the value of the

dollar. The dollar index dipped 0.38%

to 98.98.

Crude prices dropped for a third day,

as concerns about the spread of the

coronavirus and its impact on oil

demand outweighed OPEC output cuts

and Libyan supply losses. Concern

about the demand impact from the

virus has pushed Brent down despite

the shutdown of most of Libya's output

and a supply pact between the

Organization of the Petroleum

Exporting Countries (OPEC) and allies

including Russia, a group known as

OPEC+. Brent crude fell 2.81%, to

$54.72 a barrel. U.S. crude dropped

3.13% to $49.82 a barrel.

Gold fell as the metal's rally to 7-year

highs in the last session prompted

profit-taking even as worries about the

coronavirus kept investors anxious

about the fate of global economy.

"Today's move is merely a pause in the

midst of an upswing," said David

Meger, director of metals trading at

High Ridge Futures, adding investors

were booking profits after the "dramatic

rise on Monday." "The pillars of

support for gold remain to be low rates

by major central banks. Funds have

been diversifying profit away from

equity portfolios into the gold markets."

Spot gold slipped 1.51% to $1,635.32

per ounce. U.S. gold futures were

down 2.08% at $1,641.8.

Market Monitor

Traders work on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York, U.S., February

25. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid

4

U.S. health officials raise alarm

about likely local spread of

coronavirus

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control

and Prevention (CDC) alerted

Americans to begin preparing for the

spread of coronavirus in the United

States after the flu-like virus surfaced in

several more countries. The

announcement signals a change in

tone for the U.S. health agency, which

had largely been focused on efforts to

stop the virus from entering the country

and quarantining individuals traveling

from China. "The data over the past

week about the spread in other

countries has raised our level of

concern and expectation that we are

going to have community spread here,"

Dr. Nancy Messonnier, the CDC head

of respiratory diseases, told reporters

on a conference call.What is not

known, she said, is when it will arrive

and how severe a U.S. outbreak might

be. "Disruption to everyday life might

be severe,” she cautioned.

Coronavirus fears pull U.S. chip

index into a correction

Wall Street's main semiconductor

benchmark tumbled into correction

territory on Tuesday in its deepest four-

day rout since the financial crisis, as

the coronavirus spread further around

the world and deepened fears about

the global economy. Many investors

consider a correction in a security or

index to be a drop of 10% or more from

its recent peak. Even after its recent

slump, the chip index is up 27% over

the past 12 months, a rally that was

fueled by expectations that the industry

would soon recover from a drop in

global demand in recent years.

Coronavirus deepens Iran's

isolation, tests Italy and South

Korea

Iran's coronavirus death toll rose to 16,

the most outside China, increasing its

international isolation as countries as

far apart as South Korea and Italy

stepped up emergency measures to

curb the epidemic's global spread.

Believed to have come from wildlife in

Wuhan city late last year, the flu-like

disease has infected 80,000 people

and killed close to 2,700 in China. But

the World Health Organization (WHO)

says the outbreak there has been

declining since Feb. 2.

Goldman, Citi among banks curbing

Italy trips over coronavirus fears -

sources

Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan, Citigroup,

Credit Suisse and other banks have

curbed trips to Italy amid fears that the

coronavirus outbreak across the north

of the country could quickly spread

across Europe, sources said. Lazard,

BNP Paribas and Deutsche Bank also

rushed to warn staff against all "non-

essential travel" to northern Italy, four

sources told Reuters, speaking on

condition of anonymity as banking

policies are confidential. Bankers

working on sensitive deals were told to

seek special permission from top

management if they still wanted to fly

into Milan, Bologna or other northern

Italian towns, the sources said.

Goldman said its travel restrictions

applied to Italy's Lombardy and Veneto

regions, as well as to South Korea.

U.S. begins first coronavirus clinical

trial testing Gilead's experimental

drug

U.S. health officials said the first clinical

trial testing Gilead Sciences's

experimental antiviral drug, remdesivir,

in hospitalized patients with the

coronavirus has started. The first trial

participant is an American who was

repatriated after being quarantined on

the Diamond Princess cruise ship and

the study is being conducted at the

University of Nebraska Medical Center

in Omaha, according to the National

Institutes of Health.

OPEC+ will take responsible

approach to virus -Saudi energy

minister

Saudi Arabia's energy minister said he

was confident that OPEC and its

partner oil-producing nations, the so-

called OPEC+ group, would respond

responsibly to the spread of the

coronavirus. He also said Saudi Arabia

and Russia would continue to engage

regarding oil policy. "Everything serious

requires being attended to," the

minister, Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman,

told reporters at an industry conference

in Riyadh. An OPEC+ committee this

month recommended the group

deepen its output cuts by an additional

600,000 barrels per day.

In Focus: The Impact Of Coronavirus

Employees from a disinfection service company sanitize the floor of Seoul Railway Station in Seoul, South Korea, February 25. REUTERS/Kim Hong-Ji

5

Top News

JPMorgan executives say bank is

big enough to weather any storm

JPMorgan Chase executives tried to

reassure investors that the bank can

thrive during times of market and

economic stress, due to the sheer size

and breadth of its global operations. At

its annual investor day in New York,

management offered updates on

JPMorgan's four main business lines

but did not upgrade profit targets –

signaling an expectation of slow,

steady growth over the medium term.

JPMorgan has spent much of the last

decade capitalizing on healthy markets

and strong customer demand to

prepare for hard times, Chief Executive

Jamie Dimon said. That means the

bank's balance sheet is strong enough

not only to get through a downturn but

make investments in the future, he

said. Meanwhile, JPMorgan is putting

more cash into overnight lending

markets and holding less for a rainy

day, after discussing the matter with

regulators, the bank's finance chief

said. The change in approach comes

months after a squeeze in short-term

lending markets led the U.S. Federal

Reserve to step in and provide funding.

To read more, click here

Housing market strength underpins

Home Depot's holiday-quarter

results

Home Depot benefited from a solid

U.S. housing market and higher job

growth that led consumers to spend

more at its stores in the holiday

shopping quarter, helping the home

improvement chain beat sales and

profit estimates. The U.S. housing

market has gained from the lowest

mortgage rates in more than three

years after the Federal Reserve

lowered borrowing costs thrice in 2019.

Same-store sales at Home Depot rose

5.2% in the fourth quarter ended Feb.

2, above expectations of a 4.8%

increase, according to IBES data from

Refinitiv. Net sales fell 2.7% to $25.78

billion, but beat analysts' average

expectation of $25.76 billion. Net

earnings rose to $2.48 billion, or $2.28

per share, from $2.34 billion, or $2.09

per share a year earlier. Analysts were

expecting earnings of $2.10 per share.

Home Depot also raised its quarterly

dividend by 10% to $1.50 per share.

Thomson Reuters names new CEO,

earnings top estimates

Thomson Reuters said it had appointed

former Nielsen Holdings president

Steve Hasker as its new chief

executive officer, succeeding Jim

Smith. The parent of Reuters News

also announced higher-than-expected

fourth-quarter earnings, reporting a

60% year-on-year rise in operating

profit, helped by lower costs and

investments following the sale of a

controlling stake in the Financial and

Risk (F&R) business. Hasker, 50, most

recently a top executive at Hollywood

talent agency CAA and a senior

adviser to TPG Capital, will assume his

new role on March 15, Thomson

Reuters said. Smith, a former journalist

who oversaw a period of major change

at the company, will stay on for a

transition period and become chairman

of the Thomson Reuters Foundation.

Operating profit in the quarter rose 60

percent to $216 million. On an adjusted

basis, earnings in the fourth quarter

rose to $185 million, or 37 cents per

share, from $102 million, or 19 cents a

share a year ago. Analysts, on

average, expected 33 cents a share,

according to IBES from Refinitiv.

Macy's holiday quarter beats Street,

investors skeptical on strategy

Macy's holiday-quarter results beat

analyst expectations, but investor

skepticism around its cost-cutting

strategy at a time of intense online

competition sent shares down. Earlier

this month, Macy's said it would close

125 stores, including those based in

"lower tier" shopping malls, and explore

new off-mall formats in order to trim

costs and boost growth. Excluding one-

time items, the company earned $2.12

per share, beating the average

estimate of $1.96. Net sales fell 1.4%

to $8.34 billion, but were a touch above

analysts' estimate of $8.32 billion.

Comparable sales at Macy's owned

and licensed stores fell 0.5% in the

fourth quarter ended Feb. 1, compared

with the 0.93% fall estimated by

analysts, according to IBES data from

Refinitiv. Net income attributable to the

company fell to $340 million, or $1.09

per share, from $740 million, or $2.37

per share, a year earlier. The company

shares ended 5.57% down to $14.59

A file photo of The J.P.Morgan logo seen at Canary Wharf financial district in London, March 3, 2016. REUTERS/Reinhard Krause

6

Tesla and U.S. regulators strongly

criticized over role of Autopilot in

crash

The National Transportation Safety

Board sharply criticized Tesla's lack of

system safeguards in a fatal Autopilot

crash in California in 2018 and U.S.

regulators' approach in overseeing the

driver assistance systems. NTSB board

members at a hearing to determine the

crash's probable cause questioned

Tesla for the design of its semi-

automated driving assistance system,

and condemned the National Highway

Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA)

for a "hands-off approach" to regulating

these increasingly popular systems.

The board expressed growing

frustration with the failure of U.S.

regulators to take a more aggressive

approach to overseeing driver

assistance systems, suggesting greater

oversight of self-driving car systems

going forward. NHTSA said in a

statement it is aware of NTSB's report

and will carefully review it.

Apple, J&J to study if Apple Watch

app leads to lower stroke risk

Johnson & Johnson said it would

partner with Apple on a study to use an

iPhone app and the Apple Watch to

study how earlier detection of atrial

fibrillation impacts stroke in people

aged 65 or older. Last year, Apple's

Heart Study found that the watch could

accurately detect atrial fibrillation, the

most common type of irregular

heartbeat, according to a study that

explored the role of wearable devices

in identifying potential heart problems.

The new effort, called "Heartline," is

significant because J&J is one of the

world's largest medical device makers

and pharmaceutical companies.

U.S. regulator: Airlines should

complete inspections on 737 MAX

panels before flying

The Federal Aviation Administration

(FAA) proposed that airlines complete

inspections on a key component that

could make Boeing 737 MAX airplanes

vulnerable to lightning strikes and

interference from high-power radio

frequency transmitters before returning

to service. Boeing said in the

December bulletin that owners had six

months to complete inspections and

repairs, but the FAA is now proposing

that the actions be conducted before

the airlines make further flights

because of the "potential for a common

-cause failure of both engines." Boeing

said it agreed with the FAA

recommendation. Meanwhile, Japan's

ANA Holdings will buy 15 Boeing

Dreamliners worth $5 billion at list

prices, it said, the first commercial

order announcement for the U.S.

planemaker this year as it wrestles with

the grounding of the smaller 737 MAX.

To read more, click here

U.S. shale oil output growth to slow

in 2020 -Schlumberger CEO

Growth in U.S. shale oil production will

slow sharply over the next two years,

the chief executive officer of U.S.

oilfield services giant Schlumberger

said. Olivier Le Peuch told Reuters on

the sidelines of a conference in Riyadh

he expects growth to slow to 600,000

to 700,000 barrels per day in 2020 and

to 200,000 bpd in 2021, down

substantially from roughly 1 million bpd

in 2019. Lower oil prices and investor

demand for higher returns have forced

U.S. shale producers to scale back

investment after output surged over the

past three years to total 13 million

barrels per day, making the country the

world's biggest crude oil producer.

Chinese EV maker Nio surges on

funding talks with Hefei government

Shares in China's Nio surged more

after it signed framework agreements

with Hefei's city government on a

fundraising of more than 10 billion yuan

and new manufacturing facilities. Loss-

making Nio is in talks with Hefei, the

capital city of Anhui province, where it

is building cars with local automaker

JAC, to build research centres and car

plants. Shares of Nio ended 13.02%

higher at $4.39.

Disney to serve Impossible Foods

burgers at parks, resorts

Walt Disney's theme parks, resorts and

cruise line will serve Impossible Foods'

plant-based meat burgers, the

companies said, a new win for the

vegan patty maker that is broadening

its reach across fast-food chains.

Disney said it would debut Impossible

Foods' burgers and meatball

submarine at the California Adventure

Food & Wine Festival this week, and

they would soon be available at other

locations, including Tony's Town

Square Restaurant in Magic Kingdom

Park at Walt Disney World Resort.

A file photo of employees walking past a Boeing 737 Max aircraft at Boeing's 737 Max production facility in Renton, Washingto, December 16, 2019. REUTERS/Lindsey Wasson

7

FOCUS-Coronavirus clouds Apple's

timeline for new iPhones

Travel restrictions to China because of

the coronavirus have come just as

Apple's engineers usually jet off to Asia

to perfect the production of this fall's

new iPhones, former employees and

supply chain experts told Reuters. High

-volume manufacturing is not

scheduled until summer, but the first

months of the year are when Apple

irons out assembly processes with

partners such as Hon Hai Precision

IndustryTW Foxconn, two former Apple

employees said. "They probably have

one assembly line they're trying things

out on," said one of the former

employees who asked not to be named

discussing production matters.

For Wells Fargo and former

executives, $3 billion-deal with U.S.

may not be the end

Although Wells Fargo settled major

probes with federal agencies over

abusive sales practices, the bank and

its former executives are not out of the

woods yet, legal experts said. Wells

reached a $3 billion deal with the U.S.

Department of Justice and Securities

and Exchange Commission on Friday

related to opening fake customer

accounts. Prosecutors agreed not to

pursue criminal charges against the

bank if Wells cooperates with other

investigations and complies with

relevant laws for three years. However,

the deal did not address issues with

Wells' mortgage and auto-lending

businesses.

Dashboard of a downturn:

coronavirus starts to set off some

recession alarm bells

Will China's coronavirus outbreak send

the world economy into recession? As

cases spread across Asia and in

Europe, only some of the multiple

indicators investors use to monitor

recession signals are flashing red,

implying the frail global economy may

not necessarily be heading towards a

contraction. The outbreak is continuing

to spread and key data points for

February are still unavailable. What's

more, forecasting global recessions is

tricky because most countries can't

match U.S. data for its breadth. It's also

rare for the world economy to actually

shrink - prior to 2008-2009, that

happened only in 1990-1991.

U.S. President Donald Trump sprays flower petals during a wreath laying ceremony at Mahatma Gandhi's memorial at Raj Ghat in New Delhi, India,

February 25, 2020. REUTERS/Al Drago

Insight and Analysis

8

CANADA MARKET MONITOR Coming Up

Top News

Scotiabank, Bank of Montreal capital

markets strength drives earnings

beats

Bank of Montreal and Bank of Nova

Scotia, posted better-than-expected

first-quarter profits driven by trading

and advisory earnings, but some

international challenges weighed on

shares. Even as capital-market profits,

which had lagged over the past few

quarters, grew strongly, Scotiabank's

global business was hit by economic

headwinds and divestitures, while U.S.

loan losses and increased provisions

weighed on Bank of Montreal. BMO's

U.S. business posted a 20% decline in

earnings and credit-loss provisions

more than doubled to C$349 million.

BMO's net income before one-off items

was C$2.41 per share, versus analyst

estimates of C$2.37 a share. BMO

reported a 38% jump in capital markets

earnings and Scotiabank 35%.

Earnings from Scotiabank's

international banking unit - focused on

the Pacific Alliance trading bloc of

Peru, Mexico, Chile and Colombia - fell

4% from a year ago, even excluding

the impact of divestitures. "We expect

(international) earnings to grow starting

in Q2, and continue to improve

gradually to achieve our 2020 outlook

of high-single-digit growth" on a

constant-dollar basis, executives said.

Scotiabank's adjusted net income was

C$1.83 per share, compared with

analysts' estimate for profit of C$1.74

per share, according to IBES data from

Refinitiv.

Canada hit by new rail and road

barricades in wake of indigenous

arrests

Protesters in Canada blocked train

lines, Vancouver's port entrance and at

least one highway on Tuesday in

response to the arrest of 10 indigenous

protesters when police dismantled a

TSE's S&P/TSX composite Price C$ chng % chng

GAINERS

Northland Power Inc 32.78 0.20 0.61

Thomson Reuters Corp 107.20 0.60 0.56

Eldorado Gold Corp 14.51 0.07 0.48

LOSERS

Secure Energy Services Inc 3.68 -0.78 -17.49

Equitable Group Inc 97.00 -8.03 -7.65

Interfor Corp 13.64 -1.00 -6.83

Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (CIBC) is set to report its first-quarter

results. The company is expected to report a marginal fall in its quarterly profit.

Investors will be looking for comments on coronavirus and metrics such as net

interest margin.

Canada's main stock index declined,

on widespread concerns over the

coronavirus outbreak.

The Toronto Stock Exchange's S&P/

TSX composite index ended 2.19%

lower at 17,177.37.

The U.S. dollar was flat against its

Canadian counterpart at C$1.3292.

A file photo of Bank of Montreal (BMO) logo seen outside of a branch in Ottawa, Ontario, February 14, 2019. REUTERS/Chris Wattie

9

rail barricade in southern Ontario a day

ago. The new rail blockade at a

junction of three busy Canadian

National Railway lines is interrupting

commuter service, with the closure of

four stations on Metrolinx's GO Transit

passenger line to Toronto from

Hamilton. "The impact of these

blockades is unacceptable and cannot

be sustained," Public Safety Minister

Bill Blair said. "When people do not

choose to obey the law, there are other

legal recourses, either through the

courts or through enforcement, that

may be necessary." The group, which

on Facebook calls itself "Wet'suwet'en

Strong: Hamilton in Solidarity," said

police served them with an injunction,

which they burned, late on Monday.

"We're shutting down an effective

junction that handles all rail traffic in

and out of Hamilton," the group said on

Facebook. A CN spokesman said the

company was monitoring the situation,

without providing any details about how

many or what type of trains were

affected. A rail union source said the

new blockade was at a "strategic

location." "As long as that blockade is

up, nothing is going to move," the

source said.

Bank of Canada preparing for

possible digital currency - deputy

governor

The Bank of Canada said it has no

plans to issue a central bank digital

currency at this time, but preparations

are underway to create capacity to do

so should Canada's payment

ecosystem change. In a speech to a

business audience in Montreal, Bank of

Canada Deputy Governor Tim Lane

made no mention of future rate moves.

He said the bank had concluded there

was "not a compelling case" for the

issuance of a central bank digital

currency (CBDC) at this time and

outlined two primary scenarios that

could warrant the consideration of such

a policy move. "The first is where the

use of physical cash is reduced or

eliminated altogether," he said. "The

second is where private

cryptocurrencies make serious

inroads." Canadians, he added, are

currently well-served by their current

payments ecosystem, which is in the

process of being modernized.

Meanwhile, developing the capacity to

issue a CBDC is expected to take

several years. CBDCs are traditional

money, but in digital form, issued and

governed by a country's central bank.

They differ from cryptocurrencies, like

bitcoin, which are governed by

disparate online communities and are

produced by solving complicated math

problems. The Bank for International

Settlements has found a growing

number of central banks are likely to

issue their own digital currencies in the

next few years. While most of those

launching pilot schemes are from

emerging economies, China is the

closest major economy to become the

first to issue a CBDC.

Canada's protracted fighter jet

procurement race hits new delay

Canada's protracted effort to buy 88

new fighter jets hit a new delay on

Tuesday when the government granted

potential bidders another three months

to submit their proposals. Governments

of various stripes have been trying for

well over a decade to replace a fleet of

ageing Boeing CF-18 jets, some of

which are more than 40 years old. Last

July, Ottawa launched the competition

for a contract worth between C$15

billion and C$19 billion. The deadline

for submitting preliminary proposals

had been end-March. But the Liberal

government of Prime Minister Justin

Trudeau said that at the industry's

request, the deadline had been pushed

back to June 30 to give bidders more

time to address security questions.

GFL Environmental seeks to raise

$1.5 billion in re-launched IPO

GFL Environmental Holdings said it

expects to raise more than $1.5 billion

in its initial public offering, months after

the Canadian waste management

company scrapped its plan to list its

stock. GFL expects to sell shares at a

range of $20 to $21 per share, giving

the company a market valuation of

nearly $7 billion at the top-end of the

range. The company will sell 71.7

million shares and its selling

shareholders will offer 1.5 million

shares, it said in a filing. Following its

offering, the company will have two

classes of shares - subordinate voting

shares with one vote per share and

multiple voting shares with 10 votes per

share.

A file photo of a sign pictured outside the Bank of Canada building in Ottawa, Ontario, May 23, 2017. REUTERS/Chris Wattie

WEALTH NEWS ECONOMIC INDICATOR

U.S. consumer confidence holds at

higher levels despite coronavirus

U.S. consumer confidence edged up in

February, suggesting a steady pace of

consumer spending despite growing fears

over the fast-spreading coronavirus. The

Conference Board said its consumer

confidence index ticked up to 130.7 this

month from a downwardly revised 130.4 in

January. Economists polled by Reuters had

forecast it edging up to 132.0 in February.

The survey made no mention of the

coronavirus and economists do not believe

that the illness would hurt consumer

confidence. A second report showed the

S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller 20-metro-area

house price index increased 2.9% from a

year ago in December.

INVESTMENT STRATEGY

Investors piled into volatility bets before market tumble

Fears of a coronavirus-fueled slowdown have injected volatility back into markets, but some investors may be less exposed

this time around.

DEFENSE DEAL

After raucous welcome in India, Trump clinches $3 billion military equipment sale

U.S. President Donald Trump said on Tuesday India will buy $3 billion worth of military equipment, including attack helicopters,

as the two countries deepen defence and commercial ties in an attempt to balance the weight of China in the region.

BANKRUPTCY

Mallinckrodt agrees to $1.6 billion opioid settlement, unit to file Chapter 11

Mallinckrodt said it had agreed to a $1.6 billion settlement proposal in which its generic drug business would file bankruptcy in

order to resolve thousands of lawsuits alleging it helped fuel the U.S. opioid epidemic.

MASTERCARD CEO TO RESIGN

Mastercard CEO Ajay Banga to step down, insider Miebach tapped

Mastercard's chief executive officer of 10 years, Ajay Banga, will step down at the start of the next year, the company said, and

be replaced by Chief Product Officer Michael Miebach.

PARTNERSHIP

Nestle and Starbucks expect coffee alliance to boost growth

Nestle and Starbucks expect new products developed under their coffee alliance will help to increase sales, executives from

the two companies told Reuters in an interview this week.

ACQUISITION

Buyout firms finesse bids for Thyssenkrupp deal deadline-sources

Two investor groups bidding for Thyssenkrupp's 16 billion euros elevator business are making last-minute tweaks to their

binding offers this week and could nudge them higher, people familiar with the matter said.

The Day Ahead - North America is compiled by Siddharth Athreya V and Swathi Nair in Bengaluru.

For questions or comments about this report, email us at: TheDay.Ahead@thomsonreuters.com.

To subscribe for The Day Ahead newsletter click here

Thai students protest against a court decision that dissolved the popular Future Forward opposition party, less than a year after an election to end direct military rule, at Kasetsart University in Bangkok, Thailand February 24, 2020. REUTERS/Stringer