The Daily Chase: GFL sells stake in enviro services biz

Here are five things you need to know this morning:

GFL sells stake in enviro unit: Private equity groups Apollo Global Management and BC Partners have agreed to buy a controlling stake in TSX-listed GFL Environmental Inc.‘s environmental services business. The deal announced this morning will see the PE groups own 56 per cent of the business that’s now valued at $8 billion. The deal will bring in $6 billion in cash for GFL, which will use more than half of the haul for debt repayment and the rest to buy back shares.

Nvidia shares jump on CES unveiling: Nvidia shares will once again be one to watch today, as the semiconductor maker’s stock is up almost three per cent premarket after CEO Jensen Huang unveiled a number of new AI-capable chips and software products at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. Among other things, the company announced a new suite of chips targeting gamers, which used to be its biggest market but now makes up a tiny slice of its revenue due to the explosive growth in data centre demand.

Shutterstock and Getty pitch merger: Getty Images has agreed to buy rival stock photo company Shutterstock Inc. in a deal valued at US$3.7 billion. The two companies announced the plan that would see Getty shareholders own 57 per cent of the combined company on Tuesday. Getty went public via a SPAC in 2021 and has seen almost three quarters of its value wiped out since then. Shutterstock is down by about half over that same time period, as both companies face an existential threat from AI, which is a growing competitor in the imaging space.

Canada’s trade surplus to the U.S. widens: Canada’s trade surplus with the United States widened in November, Statistics Canada reported this morning. Exports to the U.S. rose by 6.8 per cent during the month, eclipsing a 4.1 per cent increase in imports and widening the surplus to $8.2 billion. While Canada continues to have a trade surplus with the U.S., which is responsible for three quarters of all trade, the country’s economy continues to be in a large deficit position with the rest of the world. Overall, imports outpaced exports and the deficit came in at $323 million during the month. That’s down from $544 million the previous month.

Toronto home sales dip in December: Toronto home sales fell in December, down 18 per cent from November, the first monthly decline since July. December is not typically a busy month for home sales, but the figure came in below the level of the same month last year. The average selling price was down by almost two per cent compared to last year to a little over $1.06 million.