Everything You Need to Know on Monday: Enbridge Says Completed Acquisition of Questar Gas Company

Good morning mooers! Here are things you need to know about today's market:

● S&P/TSX 60 Index Standard Futures are trading at 1,332.40, down 0.15%

● Bank of Canada interest rate decision coming on Wednesday amid rate cut speculation

● Federal government posts $50.9 billion deficit for 2023-24 fiscal year

● Crude oil prices edge higher after OPEC+ extends voluntary output cuts into Q3

● Enbridge says completed acquisition of Questar gas company

Today, the Canadian dollar is trading at 73.34 cents US, a slight decrease from Friday.

S&P/TSX 60 Index Standard Futures are trading at 1,332.40, down 0.15% from previous close.

The Bank of Canada will announce its latest interest rate decision on Wednesday amid speculation that the central bank might start to cut rates.

On balance, financial markets expect the bank to cut its key lending rate by a quarter of a percentage point, but the view is by no means universal, with some expecting it to wait.

Bank of Canada governor Tiff Macklem has said a rate cut is within the realm of possibilities, but that the decision will be guided by the economic data. He has said the central bank is seeing what it needs to see, but wants to see it for longer to be confident that progress toward price stability will be sustained.

The annual inflation rate for April came in at 2.7 per cent compared with 2.9 per cent in March.

The interest rate decision follows a report by Statistics Canada last week that showed economic growth in the first quarter fell short of the Bank of Canada's expectations. The report also revised its reading for growth in the fourth quarter of 2023 lower.

However, the jobs report for April showed employment rose by 90,000 for the month and marked the largest employment increase in more than a year.

The federal government ended the 2023-24 fiscal year with a deficit of $50.9 billion.

The result for the April-to-March period compared with a deficit of $41.3 billion reported for the same stretch of its 2022-23 fiscal year.

Government revenues were up $13.7 billion, or 3.2 per cent, to $444.8 billion, reflecting higher personal income tax, Goods and Services Tax and other non-tax revenues, but partially offset by lower corporate income tax revenues.

Program expenses, excluding net actuarial losses, for the fiscal year totalled $440.6 billion, up 3.1 per cent from $427.4 billion.

Higher interest rates pushed public debt charges up 35 per cent to $47.5 billion from $35.2 billion a year earlier.

Net actuarial losses totalled $7.6 billion compared with $9.8 billion in the same period last year.

In the Fiscal Monitor, the government notes that final accounting for the fiscal year, which will include additional tax revenues, will be tabled this fall.

Crude oil prices spent the last week trading in a tight range but edged higher after the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allied producers agreed to extend voluntary oil output cuts into the third quarter.

Brent crude gained 0.2% to US$81.27 per barrel and West Texas Intermediate crude rose 0.2% to US$77.13/b at last look early Monday. The group is continuing talks about extending through the rest of 2024 and into 2025, Reuters reported, citing unnamed sources.

A statement noted the Questar Gas utility will be doing business in Utah as Enbridge Gas Utah, in Wyoming as Enbridge Gas Wyoming, and in Idaho as Enbridge Gas Idaho. Questar will join Enbridge's Gas Distribution and Storage Business Unit.

"Questar Gas and Wexpro enhance the scale and breadth of our existing low risk utility business model and support our long-term dividend growth profile by providing stable, predictable cash flows," said Michele Harradence, Enbridge Executive Vice President and President, Gas Distribution and Storage.