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: Numbers showed inflation in the U.S. eased last month, raising hope the Federal Reserve could be closer to cutting its benchmark interest rate. Consumer prices excluding volatile food and energy costs – the closely watched “core” index – rose 0.2 per cent from April to May, down from 0.3 per cent the previous month.
One company seemingly receiving a boost from inflation is Dollarama Inc., which saw profits jump by 20 per cent in its first quarter. As customers look for relief from high prices, the company is also seeing surging demand in other markets. It announced on Wednesday that it has increased its stake in Latin American retailer Dollarcity.
a. They have done better than any other Big Six bank. National Bank was the best performing Big Six bank stock over the past five years. Over that period, its share price rose 78 per cent and its total return was top among big Canadian lenders.
b. Been acquired by a Swedish company for $1-billion. Copperleaf agreed to a $1-billion takeover by IFS AB of Sweden.
a. A fleece shortage. Roots said it did not have enough supply of some fleece products to meet demand.
c. Rare U.S. stamps. Mr. Gross told the Financial Times the market for collectible stamps is poised for a correction because it is no longer supported by a base of kids pursuing the hobby.
d. Southwest Airlines. Elliott wants to replace Southwest’s chief executive and start a comprehensive review of the airline’s business. Southwest’s share price has plunged over the past three years.
d. All the above. Mr. Stronach, 91, was made a member of the Order of Canada in 1999 in recognition of his success in building Magna. He later turned his hand to both Austrian politics and thoroughbred horse racing. He denies the allegations against him.
b. Its rising debt. Gita Gopinath, the fund’s first deputy managing director, urged the United States to shrink its mounting fiscal burden by reducing its spending or raising taxes.
c. Offer relief from “woke” do-gooders. The new exchange is backed by BlackRock and Citadel Securities among others and aims to open in 2026. While it says it is apolitical, it has indicated it will avoid setting rules, as Nasdaq does, on such “woke” issues as board diversity.
a. Election results. The landslide election of Claudia Sheinbaum, the left-leaning candidate of the country’s ruling party, has shaken investors’ confidence. The scale of the victory feeds fear that the new government will have few limits on its power.
c. Defend the province’s energy industry. The Alberta government set up the war room in 2019 to push back against environmentalists, journalists and anyone else it deemed to be spreading “lies” about Canadian energy. The war room, which was set up as a private corporation but funded with public money, will now be rolled into Alberta’s Intergovernmental Relations Ministry.