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Monday’s CPI Could Decide Your Next Mortgage Payment

  Canada lost 68,000 jobs in September. Inflation is sitting at 3%. The Bank of Canada has to decide on October 28 which of those facts matters more, and on Monday morning one more number lands to help it choose. If you carry a variable-rate mortgage, a HELOC or a renewal this winter, that number has a price tag. Two reports pulling in opposite directions The jobs data came first. Statistics Canada reported on October 9 that employment fell by 68,000 in September, pushing the unemployment rate to 6.5% from 6.4%. It followed a drop of about 42,000 in August, which means more than half of the 181,000 jobs gained between April and July have now been wiped out. Ontario shed 20,000 positions on its own. Markets reacted within hours: the odds of a quarter-point Bank of Canada hike on October 28 dropped to roughly 25% from about 40%, according to LSEG data reported by Reuters. Inflation is telling the opposite story. The consumer price index rose 3.0% year over year in August, matching Ju...

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U.S. stocks retreat from record highs ahead of jobs data


U.S. stocks ended lower on Monday, pulling back from record highs reached last week. The S&P 500 fell 0.5%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 0.1%, and the Nasdaq composite dropped 0.8%.

Investors were cautious ahead of some key reports this week on the U.S. economy, especially the jobs market The reports could provide more clues on the Federal Reserve’s stance on interest rates and inflation.

Technology and communication services stocks were among the biggest losers on Monday. Microsoft, Nvidia, Meta Platforms, and Netflix all declined more than 1.5%. Alaska Air Group plunged 14.2% after announcing a deal to buy Hawaiian Airlines.

Markets in Europe and Asia closed mixed on Monday. U.S. crude oil prices fell 1.4%, easing some inflationary pressure.

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