Weekly Roundup: Canada Fights Back and Builds at Home
September 7, 2026
💸 BMO and RBC are trying to sell Moneris to U.S. private equity
BMO and RBC are reportedly exploring the sale of Moneris to U.S. private equity, which could place a critical piece of Canada’s payment infrastructure under foreign control. A petition is calling on Ottawa to protect Canadian economic sovereignty by blocking the sale, and we encourage you to consider signing it. ...continue reading
🐶 Bessent has called Canada a 'little yippee dog'
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent dismissed Canada as a “little yippy dog”, which can only be seen as another feckless attempt to portray us as inconsequential. Curiously, for an apparently irrelevant country, we seem to command an extraordinary amount of Washington’s attention. 🤔 ...continue reading
💲 Counter-tariffs begin tomorrow; start your engines
Canada’s counter-tariffs on $27.6 billion of U.S. goods take effect tomorrow, matching the latest American tariffs dollar for dollar. It’s an important show of resolve, but what happens next will determine whether these measures create leverage or further escalation. ...continue reading
🍺 Saskatchewan is putting 50% tariffs on alcohol
Saskatchewan is imposing a 50% levy on American alcohol, adding some provincial weight to Canada’s response. Better late than never, we say - now Alberta is now the only province without either a restriction or matching penalty on U.S. alcohol. ...continue reading
🚗 GM is committing to 1B investment in its Oshawa auto plant
This is the under-reported story of the month: GM is committing more than $1 billion to its Canadian operations, including bringing the next-generation GMC Sierra HD to Oshawa. Given Trump's intense focus on dismantling the Canadian auto sector, that is a massive and revealing vote of confidence in Canadian manufacturing. ...continue reading
🚄 Canada is going to make its own trains
Canada is investing more than $4.7 billion to manufacture 313 new VIA Rail passenger cars in Ontario and Quebec. The project means Canadian jobs, Canadian steel, stronger domestic supply chains, and less dependence on the United States. A win from just about every angle, in our opinion. ...continue reading
🍫 Ganong and Purdy's are both expanding
Ganong is modernizing and expanding its New Brunswick factory while Purdys is opening its first stores in the Maritimes. The expansions may be modest by national standards, but both offer encouraging evidence that Canadian consumer brands are still investing and growing at home. ...continue reading
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A few other posts you may be interested in:
- Carney Lifts Tariffs: Should the Buy Canadian Movement Step Back?
- How to Handle Foreign Franchises
- The CANADA Scores Explained: How We Score the Products