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U.S. stocks upended by inflation survey’s sobering view

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U.S. stocks fell after a report showed U.S. year-ahead inflation expectations rose for the first time in seven months. The dollar gained and Treasuries fell.

The S&P 500 closed near lows of the day, falling more than 2 per cent. The growth-sensitive Nasdaq 100 posted the steepest losses, dropping just over 3 per cent as Treasury yields climbed, with the two-year rate rising back to 4.5 per cent. Both indexes posted their first weekly declines this month.

Equity markets turned sharply lower after a University of Michigan survey showed year-ahead inflation expectations rose in early October and the long-term outlook also crept up. The uptick is potentially worrisome for the Federal Reserve’s efforts to keep views anchored. It also follows data a day earlier that showed a key measure of consumer prices accelerated in September to a 40-year high. On Thursday, however, stocks roared back from early losses in one of the biggest reversals on record.

“Yesterday you had this amazing, powerful intraday rally that was completely wrong,” said Phil Orlando, chief equity market strategist at Federated Hermes. “Then you look at the Michigan numbers this morning that’s consistent with what we’re seeing in the economy, and the stock market now is down to reflect that number. That’s correct.”

Corporate America offered some bright spots, with big banks including JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Wells Fargo & Co. rising after reporting results, while Morgan Stanley fell as equity trading revenue disappointed. UnitedHealth Group Inc. shares gained after the health-care giant beat profit forecasts in the third quarter and raised its outlook for the year.

Earnings next week will provide clues on the strength of a swathe of companies, including Bank of America Corp., Goldman Sachs Group Inc., Johnson & Johnson, Netflix Inc., Tesla Inc. and United Airlines Holdings Inc.

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In the latest Fed comments, officials suggested they’re ready to hike rates higher than previously planned. Kansas City Fed President Esther George said the terminal rate may need to be higher to cool prices. San Francisco Fed’s Mary Daly said she’s “very supportive” raising to restrictive levels and to between 4.5 per cent and 5 per cent “is the most likely outcome.”

Forecasts they released last month showed rates reaching 4.4 per cent by year end and 4.6 per cent next year, from a current target range of 3 per cent to 3.25. Swaps traders have boosted wagers for rate hikes over the past week following strong payrolls and hot inflation readings, with the market leaning toward back-to-back jumbo hikes at the next two meetings and a high above 4.9 per cent next year.

 

“A lot of investors are looking at inflation to get guidance on what the Fed is going to do, to find the bottom in the market once the Fed pivots,” Jerry Braakman, chief investment officer and president of First American Trust, said in an interview. “But looking at CPI, unemployment, there’s obviously a lot of heat in the economy. Inflation is going to take some time to come down.”

In the U.K., bonds and the pound fell to end another tumultuous week. Gilts slid as Prime Minister Liz Truss confirmed speculation she will U-turn on a planned freeze on corporation tax. The Bank of England ended its emergency bond purchases on Friday, buying £1.45 billion of long-dated and inflation-linked gilts. In the wake of that, 30-year yields rose 23 basis points at 4.78 per cent, after swinging from a drop of over 30 basis points earlier.

Elsewhere, oil posted a weekly loss as inflation-fighting measures and muted Chinese demand soured the market’s outlook, blunting some of the sting from OPEC’s upcoming supply curtailments.

Some of the main moves in markets:

Stocks

  • The S&P 500 fell 2.3 per cent as of 4 p.m. New York time
  • The Nasdaq 100 fell 3.1 per cent
  • The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 1.3 per cent
  • The MSCI World index fell 1.3 per cent

Currencies

  • The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index rose 0.7 per cent
  • The euro fell 0.5 per cent to US$0.9729
  • The British pound fell 1.2 per cent to US$1.1186
  • The Japanese yen fell 1 per cent to 148.60 per dollar

Cryptocurrencies

  • Bitcoin fell 1.1 per cent to US$19,177.75
  • Ether rose 0.4 per cent to US$1,298.58

Bonds

  • The yield on 10-year Treasuries advanced seven basis points to 4.02 per cent
  • Germany’s 10-year yield advanced six basis points to 2.35 per cent
  • Britain’s 10-year yield advanced 14 basis points to 4.34 per cent

Commodities

  • West Texas Intermediate crude fell 3.7 per cent to US$85.82 a barrel
  • Gold futures fell 1.7 per cent to US$1,648.80 an ounce

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Telus prioritizing ‘most important customers,’ avoiding ‘unprofitable’ offers: CFO

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Telus Corp. says it is avoiding offering “unprofitable” discounts as fierce competition in the Canadian telecommunications sector shows no sign of slowing down.

The company said Friday it had fewer net new customers during its third quarter compared with the same time last year, as it copes with increasingly “aggressive marketing and promotional pricing” that is prompting more customers to switch providers.

Telus said it added 347,000 net new customers, down around 14.5 per cent compared with last year. The figure includes 130,000 mobile phone subscribers and 34,000 internet customers, down 30,000 and 3,000, respectively, year-over-year.

The company reported its mobile phone churn rate — a metric measuring subscribers who cancelled their services — was 1.09 per cent in the third quarter, up from 1.03 per cent in the third quarter of 2023. That included a postpaid mobile phone churn rate of 0.90 per cent in its latest quarter.

Telus said its focus is on customer retention through its “industry-leading service and network quality, along with successful promotions and bundled offerings.”

“The customers we have are the most important customers we can get,” said chief financial officer Doug French in an interview.

“We’ve, again, just continued to focus on what matters most to our customers, from a product and customer service perspective, while not loading unprofitable customers.”

Meanwhile, Telus reported its net income attributable to common shares more than doubled during its third quarter.

The telecommunications company said it earned $280 million, up 105.9 per cent from the same three-month period in 2023. Earnings per diluted share for the quarter ended Sept. 30 was 19 cents compared with nine cents a year earlier.

It reported adjusted net income was $413 million, up 10.7 per cent year-over-year from $373 million in the same quarter last year. Operating revenue and other income for the quarter was $5.1 billion, up 1.8 per cent from the previous year.

Mobile phone average revenue per user was $58.85 in the third quarter, a decrease of $2.09 or 3.4 per cent from a year ago. Telus said the drop was attributable to customers signing up for base rate plans with lower prices, along with a decline in overage and roaming revenues.

It said customers are increasingly adopting unlimited data and Canada-U.S. plans which provide higher and more stable ARPU on a monthly basis.

“In a tough operating environment and relative to peers, we view Q3 results that were in line to slightly better than forecast as the best of the bunch,” said RBC analyst Drew McReynolds in a note.

Scotiabank analyst Maher Yaghi added that “the telecom industry in Canada remains very challenging for all players, however, Telus has been able to face these pressures” and still deliver growth.

The Big 3 telecom providers — which also include Rogers Communications Inc. and BCE Inc. — have frequently stressed that the market has grown more competitive in recent years, especially after the closing of Quebecor Inc.’s purchase of Freedom Mobile in April 2023.

Hailed as a fourth national carrier, Quebecor has invested in enhancements to Freedom’s network while offering more affordable plans as part of a set of commitments it was mandated by Ottawa to agree to.

The cost of telephone services in September was down eight per cent compared with a year earlier, according to Statistics Canada’s most recent inflation report last month.

“I think competition has been and continues to be, I’d say, quite intense in Canada, and we’ve obviously had to just manage our business the way we see fit,” said French.

Asked how long that environment could last, he said that’s out of Telus’ hands.

“What I can control, though, is how we go to market and how we lead with our products,” he said.

“I think the conditions within the market will have to adjust accordingly over time. We’ve continued to focus on digitization, continued to bring our cost structure down to compete, irrespective of the price and the current market conditions.”

Still, Canada’s telecom regulator continues to warn providers about customers facing more charges on their cellphone and internet bills.

On Tuesday, CRTC vice-president of consumer, analytics and strategy Scott Hutton called on providers to ensure they clearly inform their customers of charges such as early cancellation fees.

That followed statements from the regulator in recent weeks cautioning against rising international roaming fees and “surprise” price increases being found on their bills.

Hutton said the CRTC plans to launch public consultations in the coming weeks that will focus “on ensuring that information is clear and consistent, making it easier to compare offers and switch services or providers.”

“The CRTC is concerned with recent trends, which suggest that Canadians may not be benefiting from the full protections of our codes,” he said.

“We will continue to monitor developments and will take further action if our codes are not being followed.”

French said any initiative to boost transparency is a step in the right direction.

“I can’t say we are perfect across the board, but what I can say is we are absolutely taking it under consideration and trying to be the best at communicating with our customers,” he said.

“I think everyone looking in the mirror would say there’s room for improvement.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 8, 2024.

Companies in this story: (TSX:T)

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TC Energy cuts cost estimate for Southeast Gateway pipeline project in Mexico

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CALGARY – TC Energy Corp. has lowered the estimated cost of its Southeast Gateway pipeline project in Mexico.

It says it now expects the project to cost between US$3.9 billion and US$4.1 billion compared with its original estimate of US$4.5 billion.

The change came as the company reported a third-quarter profit attributable to common shareholders of C$1.46 billion or $1.40 per share compared with a loss of C$197 million or 19 cents per share in the same quarter last year.

Revenue for the quarter ended Sept. 30 totalled C$4.08 billion, up from C$3.94 billion in the third quarter of 2023.

TC Energy says its comparable earnings for its latest quarter amounted to C$1.03 per share compared with C$1.00 per share a year earlier.

The average analyst estimate had been for a profit of 95 cents per share, according to LSEG Data & Analytics.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 7, 2024.

Companies in this story: (TSX:TRP)

The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.

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BCE reports Q3 loss on asset impairment charge, cuts revenue guidance

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BCE Inc. reported a loss in its latest quarter as it recorded $2.11 billion in asset impairment charges, mainly related to Bell Media’s TV and radio properties.

The company says its net loss attributable to common shareholders amounted to $1.24 billion or $1.36 per share for the quarter ended Sept. 30 compared with a profit of $640 million or 70 cents per share a year earlier.

On an adjusted basis, BCE says it earned 75 cents per share in its latest quarter compared with an adjusted profit of 81 cents per share in the same quarter last year.

“Bell’s results for the third quarter demonstrate that we are disciplined in our pursuit of profitable growth in an intensely competitive environment,” BCE chief executive Mirko Bibic said in a statement.

“Our focus this quarter, and throughout 2024, has been to attract higher-margin subscribers and reduce costs to help offset short-term revenue impacts from sustained competitive pricing pressures, slow economic growth and a media advertising market that is in transition.”

Operating revenue for the quarter totalled $5.97 billion, down from $6.08 billion in its third quarter of 2023.

BCE also said it now expects its revenue for 2024 to fall about 1.5 per cent compared with earlier guidance for an increase of zero to four per cent.

The company says the change comes as it faces lower-than-anticipated wireless product revenue and sustained pressure on wireless prices.

BCE added 33,111 net postpaid mobile phone subscribers, down 76.8 per cent from the same period last year, which was the company’s second-best performance on the metric since 2010.

It says the drop was driven by higher customer churn — a measure of subscribers who cancelled their service — amid greater competitive activity and promotional offer intensity. BCE’s monthly churn rate for the category was 1.28 per cent, up from 1.1 per cent during its previous third quarter.

The company also saw 11.6 per cent fewer gross subscriber activations “due to more targeted promotional offers and mobile device discounting compared to last year.”

Bell’s wireless mobile phone average revenue per user was $58.26, down 3.4 per cent from $60.28 in the third quarter of the prior year.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 7, 2024.

Companies in this story: (TSX:BCE)

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