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CA-BUSINESS Summary

30/11/09

TSX drops as lower gold offsets bank rally

TORONTO (Reuters) - Toronto's main stock index closed lower on Monday as the impact of lower gold prices more than offset a rally by bank shares ahead of bank financial reports set to be released later this week. Gold prices were lower for the bulk of the session and took a toll on gold-mining shares and slowly ate away at early gains for the TSX, which at one point was up more than 1 percent.

Canadian economy edges out of recession

OTTAWA (Reuters) - The Canadian economy crawled out of recession in the third quarter after three quarters of contraction, but growth was subpar as industrial production continued to decline, particularly in the energy sector. Statistics Canada reported on Monday 0.4 percent annualized growth in real gross domestic product for the period. But September provided a good hand-off into the fourth quarter by expanding 0.4 percent on a monthly basis from August.

No quick political fix on cards for CN Rail strike

OTTAWA/VANCOUVER (Reuters) - Canada's efforts to speed through legislation to halt a strike by Canadian National Railway's locomotive engineers hit a political roadblock on Monday, preventing an immediate end to the walkout. Two opposition parties, the New Democratic Party and the Bloc Quebecois, said they would oppose any attempt by the Conservative government to fast-track a bill that would force the strikers back to work.

Wealth Manager: Canada's junk bond market seen booming

TORONTO (Reuters) - Canada's junk bond market is set to boom as income trusts are phased out and buyers seek investments that yield more than government debt and are less volatile than equities. Junk bonds, also known as high-yield debt, consist of debt from companies that don't have an investment grade rating. The risk of default is higher than for better quality bonds, but the yield is higher too.

Dubai says not responsible for Dubai World debt

DUBAI (Reuters) - The Dubai government said on Monday it wasn't responsible for the debts of Dubai World, dealing a blow to creditors' assumptions that the Arab emirate would guarantee the conglomerate's liabilities. "Creditors need to take part of the responsibility for their decision to lend to the companies," said Abdulrahman al-Saleh, director general of Dubai's Department of Finance. "They think Dubai World is part of the government, which is not correct."

Noront boosts Freewest offer in bid to top Cliffs

TORONTO (Reuters) - Noront Resources boosted its offer to buy fellow Canadian miner Freewest Resources Canada on Monday, attempting to top a rival bid from U.S.-based Cliffs Natural Resources . The offer -- two shares and one purchase warrant for every seven Freewest shares, or about C$222 million ($210 million), according to Noront -- heats up the battle for Freewest's chromite exploration assets in northern Ontario, which sit next to Noront exploration properties.

Canada's M&A volume climbs again in Q3: Crosbie

TORONTO (Reuters) - The number of mergers and acquisitions announced in Canada rose 12 percent in the third quarter, the second straight quarterly increase, while the value of transactions surged 27 percent, investment bank Crosbie & Co said on Monday. There were 221 deals announced in the quarter, valued at C$30.2 billion ($28.6 billion), according to data compiled by the Financial Post Crosbie report. That compares with 198 transactions valued at C$23.8 billion in the second quarter, the report showed.

Patheon, JLL settle legal battle

TORONTO (Reuters) - Patheon Inc said on Monday it had settled a lengthy legal battle with its majority shareholder, JLL Partners, putting an end to almost a year of uncertainty for the Canadian drugmaker. The settlement includes the appointment of a new board and negates the need for a special shareholders meeting scheduled for mid-December, which had called for a new slate of directors at the contract drug manufacturer.

First Quantum to build nickel mine in Finland

TORONTO (Reuters) - First Quantum Minerals said on Monday its board has approved construction of the $400 million Kevitsa nickel and copper project in Finland, with commercial production targeted for mid-2012. Vancouver-based First Quantum acquired the project when it bought Scandinavian Minerals last year, and it would represent its first operation outside of Africa.

EnCana wraps up spinoff of its oil business

CALGARY, Alberta (Reuters) - EnCana Corp , Canada's largest natural gas producer, said on Monday it has completed the split of the company into separate gas and oil businesses and expects shares in spun-off oil company Cenovus Energy Inc to start trading later this week. EnCana will distribute shares in Cenovus on December 7, on a one-for-one basis, though Cenovus stock, using the CVE symbol, will begin trading on the Toronto Stock Exchange on December 3 and on December 9 on the New York Stock Exchange.

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