Here are five things you need to know this morning:
The final countdown: The serpentine U.S. electoral process is winding its way to a close today, as voting is underway across the country. If polling is to be believed, the race is among the closest on record amid a deeply divided electorate, and investors are on tenterhooks waiting for things to shake out one way or the other. Equity markets are mildly positive in premarket trading while U.S. Treasuries are falling and a volatility in the bond market has spiked to its highest level in a year. The ICE BofA MOVE Index (a measure of implied fluctuations in bond yields) hit its highest level since October 2023 this morning, Bloomberg reports. We’ll have extensive coverage of the election with reporters on the ground across the country all day, and plenty of analysis from our market experts about what it all means for investment portfolios – but expect volatility to continue across all asset classes until we get any sense of clarity.
B.C. ports lock out dockworkers: Dock employers in Vancouver and Prince Rupert shut out their workers on Monday after the union issued a strike notice. The move brings activity at Canada’s biggest and third-biggest ports to a halt, with one estimate suggesting up to $800 million a day worth of goods is now sitting idle.
Bank of Canada to release summary of deliberations: The Bank of Canada will release the summary of its deliberations at its policy meeting at the end of October this afternoon. The bank opted to cut its benchmark rate by 50 basis points that meeting, so it should be interesting to try to decipher how unanimous that decision was – and what the trends might be headed into the next policy meeting in early December.
Fashion retailer Groupe Dynamite kicks tires on IPO: Groupe Dynamite Inc., a Canadian retailer of women’s fashion, has hired banks for an initial public offering that could happen in the coming weeks. The company has about 300 stores in the U.S. and Canada which operate under brands like Dynamite, Garage and others. Bloomberg reports that the company is hoping to value itself at up to $1 billion and is working with major financial institutions in the U.S. and Canada on a potential offering, which, if it happens in Canada, would be a major boost for the stagnant IP market, where just $700 million has been raised this year, most of which went to ETFs.
Snowflake hacking suspect detained in Canada: Canadian authorities have arrested the man suspected of being responsible for the hacks of as many as 165 customers of software firm Snowflake Inc. Following a request from the U.S. Department of Justice, authorities in Canada took Alexander “Connor” Moucka into custody on a provisional arrest warrant on Oct. 30, Bloomberg is reporting, citing people familiar with the matter. He is due to appear in court today. The charges levied against him were not immediately available.