Welcome to The Globe and Mail’s business and investing news quiz. Join us each week to test your knowledge of the stories making the headlines. Our business reporters come up with the questions, and you can show us what you know.
This week: Royal Bank of Canada posted second-quarter profit that beat analysts’ estimates. The bank’s profit jumped 7 per cent to $4-billion, or $2.74 per share, in the three months that ended April 30. But not all of the big banks had such good news as earnings season continued, with one receiving a significant downgrade. WestJet also got some troubling news, as WestJet Encore pilots issued a 72-hour strike notice to management and the government, its union said on Wednesday.
a. Zero. Canada was the first G7 central bank to cut rates this business cycle, although it was followed a day later by the European Central Bank.
b. The Canadian government. It is being paid for entirely by the Canadian government. The project will effectively double the region’s cross-border traffic capacity and make it easier for manufacturers to ship products back and forth across the border.
a. Spin off the company’s oil pipelines. TC Energy shareholders voted to spin off the company’s liquids pipeline business into a new company called South Bow Corp. TC Energy will continue to own the company’s natural gas pipelines, storage, and power businesses.
c. $1.2-billion. The lenders say if no bid satisfies their $1.2-billion minimum, they will provide the financing to complete construction themselves.
d. He got married. It was Mr. Murdoch’s fifth marriage. He and model Jerry Hall divorced in 2022; his new wife is Elena Zhukova, a 67-year-old Russian-born retired molecular biologist.
b. Lululemon. Lululemon stock had been in a slump but jumped this week after the retailer beat Wall Street’s earnings estimates. However, the Vancouver-based company only narrowly topped revenue expectations and is facing slow growth in the Americas, its largest market.
a. France. The downgrade, to double-A-minus from double-A, will increase France’s borrowing costs. It adds to pressure on President Emmanuel Macron to deal with the country’s gaping deficits.
b. GFL manages waste. One of the current buyout offers is for the entire business, the other is for its environmental services division, which offers liquid waste management and soil remediation services.
d. 99 per cent. Okay, trick question. A software glitch at the New York Stock Exchange resulted in massive but momentary paper losses for Berkshire and other companies. Berkshire stock seemingly lost 99.97 per cent of its value before the trades were corrected.
c. GameStop. GameStop, a struggling video game retailer, has enjoyed a big jump in its share price since Mr. Gill boasted of his position.
d. Microsoft. At least for now, Microsoft remains in top spot. The software giant was worth US$3.15-trillion as of Thursday morning compared to Nvidia’s US$3.012-trillion.
c. Have a carry-on bag. WestJet says the no-carry-on-bag policy will mean faster boarding. Oh, joy.