Carney outlines Canada's new defence spending promise
Prime Minister Mark Carney outlined Canada's new promise to increase defence spending to five per cent of the GDP over the next 10 years, aknowledging the governent has work to do to shore up public support for the plan.
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CTV News
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CBC
30 minutes ago
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Edmonton climate policies drive up city building costs, report shows
The City of Edmonton is amending a key climate policy after a report showed building facilities like fire halls and recreation centres in Edmonton is higher due to its current standards than it would be if the city followed a basic design. Last November, city councillors asked administration for a cost-benefit analysis to see how much city policies were adding to the price of building capital projects, concerned that it generally costs less to build in neighbouring jurisdictions like Leduc. The city commissioned a third party, S2 Architecture, to compare two theoretical fire station models: one designed with the City of Edmonton's bylaws and policies and one designed to meet only the minimum code requirements. The findings show that building a fire hall under the city's current standards would cost just over $21 million, 58 per cent more than the $13 million estimated to build a station with a basic design. The case study factored in four city policies when building: the climate resilience policy, the fire rescue service delivery policy, City of Edmonton facility construction standard and the Edmonton Design Committee process. Council's new infrastructure committee discussed the report's findings at a meeting Wednesday. "Direct construction costs are increased by the application of city requirements," Pascale Ladouceur, the city's branch manager of infrastructure planning and design, told councillors. "The biggest cost driver is the climate resilience policy." The committee heard from several speakers, including Lindsay Butterfield with BILD Edmonton Metro, a real estate industry association, who asked councillors to review the policies. "Look at all the options and make trade-offs where they're necessary because we should be looking to minimize costs as well for the entire city's benefit," Butterfield said. But climate advocates, including Jim Sandercock with the Alberta Ecotrust Foundation, urged councillors to follow the current climate policy. "It's going to be really expensive in the future to retrofit buildings that were built to minimum code." Mayor Amarjeet Sohi introduced a motion directing administration to amend the climate policy and explore options for reducing costs while still meeting the goal of creating zero emissions. Committee agreed to the motion and administration is scheduled to present the proposed amendments next spring. "Absolutely, we cannot lose the intent of these policies," Sohi said. "They are there for a good reason, whether they're there for climate resiliency, whether they're there for the safety and protection and creating the right conditions for our front-line folks." 'Valid question' Ladouceur said the findings in the report are a springboard to reviewing the current rules. "I think it's a valid question for councillors to understand: Have we made decisions in the past, administration and council together, that impacts the cost of our infrastructure?" Ladouceur said in an interview Tuesday. The climate resilience policy requires the design to be emissions-neutral. The co-chair of the city's energy transition and climate resilience committee, Jacob Komar, argues that the report findings are inflated because the consultants used higher standards in the case study examples than what's actually needed to create an energy-efficient building. "The walls are probably to an insulation level that is double what is needed for a net-zero building," Komar said in an interview with CBC News Tuesday. Also an engineer who works on net-zero emissions projects, Komar said there's a diminishing return on insulation — the more you add, the less you get for it. "So the walls, the roof, the windows, the doors — there's over $2 million of extra cost that they've added." Ward sipiwiyiniwak Coun. Sarah Hamilton said the case study is an opportunity for reviewing and possibly revising policies, not setting a firm path for council to take. "The government has a role in terms of furthering climate resilience. We have a role in furthering design excellence. We have a role in furthering, I think even our own construction standards," Hamilton said. "We've heard over the decades that Edmontonians don't want something disposable. They want to be proud of the buildings that we're building with their money."
Globe and Mail
32 minutes ago
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A Closer Look at Q2 Earnings: What Can Investors Expect?
Note: The following is an excerpt from this week's Earnings Trends report. You can access the full report that contains detailed historical actual and estimates for the current and following periods, please click here>>> Here are the key points: Total S&P 500 earnings for the June quarter are expected to be up +4.9% from the same period last year on +3.9% higher revenues. While negative revisions to Q2 estimates have stabilized in recent weeks, estimates for the period have been under significant pressure relative to other recent periods since the June-quarter got underway. Q2 earnings estimates for 13 of the 16 Zacks sectors have come down since the quarter got underway, with Aerospace, Utilities, and Consumer Discretionary as the only sectors whose estimates have modestly moved higher since the start of April. Q2 earnings estimates for the Tech and Finance sectors, the two largest contributors to aggregate S&P 500 earnings, accounting for 51% of all index earnings, have also been cut since the quarter got underway. The quarter started with significant pressure on Tech sector estimates, but the negative revisions trend notably stabilized in the subsequent weeks. In terms of year-over-year growth, three sectors are expected to enjoy double-digit earnings growth in Q2: Aerospace (+15.1%), Tech (+11.8%), and Consumer Discretionary (+105.6%). On the negative side, seven sectors are expected to earn less in Q2 relative to the year-earlier period, with double-digit declines at the Energy (-24.9%), Construction (-14.4%), and Autos (-30.2%) sectors. The Q2 earnings season will really get going once JPMorgan JPM, Bank of America BAC, and Wells Fargo WFC kick-off the June-quarter reporting cycle for the Finance sector. Making Sense of Earnings Expectations for 2025 Q2 and Beyond The start of Q2 coincided with heightened tariff uncertainty following the punitive April 2 nd tariff announcements. While the onset of the announced levies was eventually delayed by three months, the issue has understandably weighed heavily on estimates for the current and upcoming quarters, particularly in the first few weeks following the April 2 nd announcement. The expectation at present is for Q2 earnings for the S&P 500 index to increase by +4.9% from the same period last year on +3.9% higher revenues. The chart below shows how Q2 earnings growth expectations have evolved since the start of the year. While it is not unusual for estimates to be adjusted lower, the magnitude and breadth of Q2 estimate cuts are greater than we have seen in the comparable periods of other recent quarters. Since the start of the quarter, estimates have come down for 13 of the 16 Zacks sectors, with the biggest declines for the Transportation, Autos, Energy, Construction, and Basic Materials sectors. The only sectors experiencing favorable revisions in this period are Aerospace, Utilities, and Consumer Discretionary. Estimates for the two largest earnings contributors to the index – Tech & Finance – have also declined since the quarter began. Tech sector earnings are expected to be up +11.8% in Q2 on +10.8% higher revenues. While these earnings growth expectations are materially below where they stood at the start of April, the revisions trend appears to have notably stabilized lately, as we have been flagging in recent weeks. You can see this in the sector's revisions trend in the chart below. This stabilizing turn in the Tech sector's revisions trend can be seen in expectations for full-year 2025 as well, as the chart below shows. The two charts above show that estimates for the Tech sector have stabilized and are no longer under the type of downward pressure experienced earlier in the quarter. The Tech sector is much more than just any other sector, as it alone accounts for almost a third of all S&P 500 earnings. The Earnings Big Picture The chart below shows expectations for 2025 Q2 in terms of what was achieved in the preceding four periods and what is currently expected for the next three quarters. The chart below shows the overall earnings picture for the S&P 500 index on an annual basis. While estimates for this year have been under pressure lately, there haven't been a lot of changes to estimates for the next two years at this stage. Stocks have recouped their tariff-centric losses, although the issue has only been deferred for now. While some of the more dire economic projections have eased lately, there is still plenty of macro uncertainty that will likely continue to weigh on earnings estimates in the days ahead, particularly as we gain visibility on the tariffs question. Only $1 to See All Zacks' Buys and Sells We're not kidding. Several years ago, we shocked our members by offering them 30-day access to all our picks for the total sum of only $1. No obligation to spend another cent. Thousands have taken advantage of this opportunity. Thousands did not - they thought there must be a catch. Yes, we do have a reason. We want you to get acquainted with our portfolio services like Surprise Trader, Stocks Under $10, Technology Innovators, and more, that closed 256 positions with double- and triple-digit gains in 2024 alone. See Stocks Now >> Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. 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