TORONTO -- Five things to watch for in the Canadian business world in the coming week:
At the table: Federal Finance Minister Bill Morneau hosts his provincial and territorial counterparts Monday in Ottawa. Morneau has been trying to forge ahead with the $35-billion infrastructure bank, but questions about financing, governance and the possibility of political interference persist.
In data we trust: To quote Plato, "A good decision is based on knowledge and not on numbers." That may be, but rest assured many will be watching the economic figures from Statistics Canada this week as talk ramps up that the Bank of Canada could hike its interest rate later this year. The latest data on wholesale trade, retail trade and the consumer price index are on tap.
BlackBerry is back: A big week ahead for BlackBerry followers, with an annual general meeting planned for Wednesday and its first-quarter earnings scheduled to come out Friday. The company's shares have enjoyed a nice ride in recent weeks, and there is buzz that BlackBerry could be ripening for a takeover.
Dead on arrival: The B.C. legislature will reconvene Thursday with a throne speech, but it's what happens next that's important. Premier Christy Clark has acknowledged the likelihood of losing a confidence vote, which would set off a chain of events that could have consequences for the Trans Mountain expansion, the Site C hydro dam and the future of the liquefied natural gas industry. The NDP and Greens have formed an alliance that is more anti-oil and gas than Clark's Liberals.
Tilting at sawmills: The softwood dispute is bound to flare up again Friday, when the U.S. is expected to announce another round of levies against Canadian softwood producers. This time, it's deciding on anti-dumping duties that could add another 10 per cent to tariffs that now range from three to 24 per cent.
