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Reuters Canada Business Summary

19/11/07

Canada's National Bank finally reveals ABCP charge

VANCOUVER, British Columbia (Reuters) - National Bank of Canada said on Monday it expects to record a fourth-quarter pre-tax charge of C$575 million ($587 million) on its holdings in non-bank asset-backed commercial paper, a higher-than-anticipated hit and the largest by a Canadian big bank for exposure to these troubled debt investments. Even so, shares in National Bank, Canada's sixth biggest bank, rose on the Toronto Stock Exchange on relief that the amount was finally made public and analysts said the bank remained in healthy shape.

U.S. dollar fall appropriate but uneven: BOC's Dodge

CAPE TOWN (Reuters) - The U.S. dollar's fall has been appropriate but the balance of the decline has not been very even, Bank of Canada Governor David Dodge said on Monday. "It has been appropriate for the U.S. dollar to depreciate as it has," Dodge said on the sidelines of a gathering of central bankers in Cape Town.

WestJet eyes service pact with Air France: report

TORONTO (Reuters) - Canada's WestJet Airlines is in talks with Air France to consolidate their services and step up a turf war with much-bigger rival carrier, Air Canada , a newspaper said on Monday. The Globe and Mail paper cited industry sources as saying WestJet, based in Western Canada, is in talks with Air France to reach an "interline" agreement to cooperate on services such as baggage transfer.

Canadian dollar slips in wake of Dodge comments

TORONTO (Reuters) - The Canadian dollar slipped against the U.S. dollar on Monday following comments by Bank of Canada Governor David Dodge which raised the specter of an interest rate cut, although higher oil prices cushioned the fall. Canadian bond prices were not hurt by domestic data that came in ahead of expectations, as dealers used Dodge's comments as an excuse to enter more secure assets like government debt.

Toronto stocks kicked lower by banks and metals

TORONTO (Reuters) - Toronto stock market's main index dropped more than 100 points on Monday, pulled down by falling commodity prices and the prospect of more writedowns in the North American banking sector. "There's continued weakness across most sectors, namely materials and financials, and I would suspect that we won't see any improvement until after the U.S. Thanksgiving holiday," said Steve Ibel, an institutional equities trader at Beacon Securities in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

Canadian wholesale trade jumps in September

OTTAWA (Reuters) - Canadian wholesale trade grew more than expected in September on widespread gains outside the automotive and building materials sectors, rising 1.1 percent after a sharp drop in August, Statistics Canada said on Monday. Analysts in a Reuters survey had forecast, on average, that wholesale activity would climb 0.2 percent in the month. Statscan revised the August figure to a decline of 1.9 percent from a 2.0 percent drop previously reported.

Petrolifera stock plunges on Argentina tax change

CALGARY, Alberta (Reuters) - Petrolifera Petroleum Ltd shares plunged nearly 17 percent on Monday as the company said an export tax on its crude oil production in Argentina would cut its cash flow by about 8 percent. Shares in the company were down C$2.16 at C$10.80 late in the morning on the Toronto Stock Exchange. Almost 250,000 shares changed hands, almost 40 percent more than the usual daily average.

Auto sales could hit 15-year low

DETROIT (Reuters) - Three top investors in the automotive industry painted a grim picture on Sunday for the sector in 2008, with one executive predicting a possible slump in U.S. sales to levels not seen in 15 years. The weakest forecast is for a possible 9.4 percent decline. But all three -- Jerry York, an adviser to billionaire investor Kirk Kerkorian; financier Wilbur Ross; and Thomas Stallkamp, a former Chrysler president -- were more pessimistic than many in the battered industry.

Celgene to buy Pharmion for $2.9 billion

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Biotechnology company Celgene Corp will buy Pharmion Corp for about $2.9 billion in stock and cash, the companies said on Sunday, in a deal that boosts Celgene's push into the oncology field. Celgene will acquire Pharmion's shares for $72 each, payable in cash and Celgene stock. Pharmion shareholders will receive about one-third cash and the rest in Celgene stock, at a ratio to be determined just before the deal's completion -- expected some time in the second quarter.

Oil eases below $94

LONDON (Reuters) - Oil handed back early gains to stand below $94 a barrel on Monday as investors took profits, but concerns over the dollar's weakness and uncertainties about OPEC's moves to boost output continued to provide support. OPEC's heads of state summit in Riyadh ended on Sunday without signaling whether the producer group would agree to pump more oil at its December 5 policy meeting in Abu Dhabi.

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