Prime Minister Mark Carney says Ottawa is ready to resume tariff talks once U.S. President Donald Trump decides to so, but he stopped short of calling on Ontario to pull anti-tariff ads running in the United States. Mr. Trump abruptly cancelled the talks late Thursday night after he became annoyed at ads featuring former president Ronald Reagan that were sponsored by the Ontario government. Mr. Carney spoke while boarding a plane for an Asian trip, where he is expected to see Mr. Trump in South Korea next week for APEC summit, but did not take questions from reporters. “We can’t control the trade policy of the United States,” he said, while noting “detailed and constructive progress” had been made in recent weeks to get tariff relief on steel and aluminum as well as possible deal on energy. “We stand ready to pick up on that progress, to build on that progress when the Americans are ready to have those discussions because it will be to the benefit of workers in the United States, workers in Canada,” he said.

The three-way split of a 132-year-old American institution will go down in history as one of the most complex corporate transformations in America. Here’s how they did it. In shepherding GE through a multi-year strategic transformation into three distinct companies in the healthcare, energy and aerospace industries, its board overcame them all in an effort that ultimately created enormous value for shareholders. At $230 billion, the combined market capitalization of GE Aerospace, GE Vernova and GE HealthCare today is more than triple GE’s valuation in November 2021 before the spin-offs were announced. Providing rigorous oversight during that period of intense structural change demanded steadfast resolve from the board in the face of stakeholder skepticism. “The courage our board demonstrated through the transformation of GE and launch of GE Aerospace, GE Vernova and GE HealthCare cannot be overstated,” recounts Larry Culp, chair and CEO of GE Aerospace. “This is not just a board that runs toward the fire. Our board balanced urgency with thoughtful oversight, pushing each other and management to challenge their assumptions while never losing sight of the company’s purpose of building a world that works.”

The Writers Guild of America, which represents screenwriters and newsroom staffers, said it will oppose a deal combining Paramount Skydance and Warner Bros Discovery Bloomberg News reported on Thursday. "Merger after merger in the media industry has harmed workers, diminished competition and free speech, and wasted hundreds of billions of dollars better invested in organic growth," the guild said in an emailed statement to Bloomberg. Combining Warner Bros with Paramount, another major studio or a streaming company would be "a disaster for writers, for consumers, and for competition," the union said, adding they will press regulators to block any such deal, according to the report. The Writers Guild of America and Warner Bros Discovery did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment, while Paramount Skydance declined to comment. Paramount Skydance is seen as the top contender to buy Warner Bros Discovery given CEO David Ellison's financial backing and political connections — even though the Warner Bros Discovery board rejected the nearly $24-per-share offer earlier this week, as Reuters first reported.

A boardroom shake-up at Novo Nordisk has handed unprecedented power to its top shareholder, the Novo Nordisk Foundation, rattling investors despite calls for stronger leadership at the drugmaker behind weight-loss treatment Wegovy.
Once Europe's most valuable firm thanks to its blockbuster obesity drug, Novo Nordisk has stumbled in the last year. Slowing sales and intensifying competition from U.S. rival Eli Lilly have eroded its market share and shaken investor confidence. The Novo Nordisk Foundation, which holds more than three-quarters of the firm's voting shares, this week pushed out Novo's board chairman and independent members for not acting quickly enough to stem the decline in its key U.S. market. Foundation chair Lars Rebien Sorensen - a former long-time Novo chief executive - will also become the company board chairman. The dual role is unprecedented in the firm's history. Evan Seigerman, healthcare analyst at BMO Capital Markets, said the move showed the Foundation - which says on its website that it plays an "arm's length" role in the company - was in full control, given its 77% vote share.

Le premier ministre de la Nouvelle-Écosse, Tim Houston, affirme que son gouvernement s’inspirera des efforts déployés par l’Ontario dans le domaine nucléaire, dans le cadre d’une nouvelle entente signée jeudi avec le ministre de l’Énergie de la province, malgré l’absence de projets nucléaires à court terme dans la province de l’Atlantique. Le ministre de l’Énergie de l’Ontario, Stephen Lecce, et Tim Houston, qui s’est autoproclamé ministre de l’Énergie de la Nouvelle-Écosse il y a deux jours, ont tenu une conférence de presse au centre-ville d’Halifax pour signer le protocole d’entente sur les petits réacteurs modulaires (PRM). «Ce n’est certainement pas un projet à court terme», a déclaré M. Houston aux journalistes, précisant que la province n’a aucun projet imminent d’acquisition d’un petit réacteur modulaire. «Mais nous devons participer au processus afin de comprendre les possibilités, et c’est ce qui se produit», a nuancé le premier ministre.

La loi spéciale promise par François Legault pour briser l’impasse avec les médecins inclura des mesures pour freiner leur potentiel exode vers d’autres provinces. «Il va y avoir des mesures», a déclaré le premier ministre lors d’une brève mêlée de presse, jeudi matin. «Pour freiner l’exode, il va y avoir des mesures dans la loi?» a vérifié une journaliste. «Oui», a-t-il répondu, sans toutefois préciser sa pensée. Le porte-parole de l’opposition officielle en santé, Marc Tanguay, venait d’affirmer en point de presse qu’une loi spéciale démobilisera les médecins, qui risquent de claquer la porte, ce qui se répercutera sur les patients, selon lui. Le quart (24%) des quelque 10 000 médecins de famille qui ont facturé dans le régime public en 2022-2023 a 60 ans et plus. «Chaque femme et homme est libre, au Québec, de dire: “Bien, sais-tu quoi? Moi, je prends ma retraite. Sais-tu quoi? Moi, je m’en vais en Ontario”, a fait remarquer Marc Tanguay. Dans les jours qui vont suivre, ça n’ira pas mieux dans le réseau, ça va être pire.»

The European Union on Friday said Meta and TikTok had breached their transparency obligations after an investigation that could result in billions of dollars in fines. The inquiry found both companies had violated the Digital Services Act, the EU’s trailblazing digital rule book that imposes a set of strict requirements designed to keep internet users safe online, including making it easier to report counterfeit or unsafe goods or flag harmful or illegal content like hate speech, as well as a ban on ads targeted at children. “We are making sure platforms are accountable for their services, as ensured by EU law, towards users and society,” said Henna Virkunnen, the EU’s executive vice president for tech sovereignty, security and democracy in a post on X. ““Our democracies depend on trust. That means platforms must empower users, respect their rights, and open their systems to scrutiny. The DSA makes this a duty, not a choice.”

The Bank of Canada will reduce its overnight interest rate by 25 basis points on October 29 for a second consecutive time to support a weak economy under threat from U.S. tariffs, according to a majority of economists polled by Reuters. Tariffs imposed by the U.S. on steel, aluminum and automobiles have hurt Canada’s exports, leading to a 1.6% economic contraction in the second quarter. The economy has been partly shielded by the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) which is up for review next year. U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday suddenly terminated all trade talks with Canada. Unemployment was already at a record high and firms are pessimistic about investments and hiring. BoC Governor Tiff Macklem recently said the central bank would place more emphasis on potential risks in its upcoming decision.

Le commissaire européen à la démocratie affirme qu’il ne fera pas de leçons aux autres pays alors que l’Union européenne (UE) progresse dans la réglementation des plateformes technologiques et de l’intelligence artificielle. Michael McGrath, commissaire européen à la démocratie, à la justice, à l’État de droit et à la protection des consommateurs, est en visite au Canada alors que le gouvernement libéral poursuit une politique d’IA qui met moins l’accent sur la réglementation et davantage sur l’adoption de cette technologie. Michael McGrath, commissaire européen à la démocratie, à la justice, à l’État de droit et à la protection des consommateurs Il a indiqué que l’Union européenne progresse dans la réglementation des plateformes technologiques et de l’intelligence artificielle. « Ce n’est pas à nous de faire la leçon […] à un pays tiers. Chaque pays décidera de son propre système de gouvernance et de réglementation en matière de technologie, a-t-il expliqué à La Presse Canadienne, lors d’une entrevue à la suite d’un discours prononcé lors d’une conférence à Montréal au sujet des menaces persistantes qui pèsent sur la réglementation numérique mondiale.

Une offre remaniée d’augmentations salariales et d’aides sociales chez Boeing va être soumise au vote des salariés qui sont en grève depuis près de trois mois dans plusieurs usines militaires des États-Unis, selon un courrier de la direction jeudi. Mercredi, les dirigeants du constructeur aéronautique et les représentants des quelque 3200 salariés en grève depuis plus de 80 jours s’étaient quittés sur un constat d’échec et un refus du syndicat de soumettre la proposition de la direction au vote. Mais la donne a depuis changé. « Je suis heureux que les dirigeants syndicaux aient finalement accepté de suivre votre processus démocratique et de vous laisser décider de votre avenir », a écrit jeudi aux grévistes le responsable de la branche Boeing Air Dominance, Dan Gillian. Le dirigeant vante dans son message le paquet de mesures proposées : hausse générale de salaires (au moins 24 % sur 5 ans), primes, octroi d’actions, améliorations de la couverture santé et des cotisations pour la retraite, augmentation des congés.

L’Ontario déploie des efforts soutenus depuis cinq ans afin de permettre à ses entreprises de décrocher leur part des marchés dans les pays francophones. Résultat : le Québec n’est plus la seule province à s’élancer sur cette patinoire, qui prend encore plus d’importance dans le contexte de la guerre commerciale avec les États-Unis. La ministre des Affaires francophones, Caroline Mulroney, affirme que la francophonie représente un atout économique dans la manche du gouvernement Ford. Les statistiques sont éloquentes. Le poids démographique des francophones est d’environ 4,6 % en Ontario. Mais leur poids économique est plus important. Les quelque 30 000 entreprises francophones ayant pignon sur rue en Ontario représentent plus de 10 % du PIB de la province, souligne la ministre Caroline Mulroney en entrevue avec La Presse.

China will seek to become more self-sufficient technologically over the coming five years, the ruling Communist Party said in a new economic blueprint, signaling no respite in its intensifying rivalry with Washington. In an outline of the country’s next five-year plan, which will guide the world’s second-largest economy through the rest of the decade, Communist leaders drew a connection between the complex challenges the country faces and their drive to fortify the country through increased investments in technology and advanced manufacturing. The blueprint signals how competition between Beijing and Washington is only likely to escalate, with China looking to further reduce its reliance on the U.S. while advancing its own technological ambitions. The next five-year plan, the country’s 15th since 1953, is a distinct feature of the country’s Communist system, but has drawn increasing interest from the capitalistic world as Beijing’s economic and technological advances cast industrial policy and central planning in a more favorable light.

Airbus, Leonardo and Thales announced Thursday that they will combine their satellite and space activities to form a “leading European player in space,” as the region looks for a homegrown rival to Elon Musk’s Starlink. The companies — each a heavyweight in the aerospace and defense sector in their own right — said the joint venture would develop and build, “a comprehensive portfolio of complementary technologies and end-to-end solutions, from space infrastructure to services.” The development of space launchers will be excluded from the new company’s operations. The combined entity is expected to generate mid-triple-digit million euros in annual synergies on operating income within five years of closing, and it’s set to employ 25,000 people across Europe. European defense stocks jumped on Thursday, with the regional Stoxx Aerospace and Defense index adding 0.9%. Leonardo shares were last seen trading 1.8% higher, while Thales gained 0.6% and Airbus was up by 0.2%.

You would be hard-pressed today to find a business that isn’t either already implementing artificial intelligence in its operations or strongly considering it. Whether it is for efficiency gains, maximizing data, or reducing risk, the benefits are undeniable. However, as AI technologies become more sophisticated and embedded in business processes, directors face new responsibilities and challenges. The implications of AI policy are now a board-level issue, requiring strategic oversight, risk management, and a commitment to ethical leadership. Boards have always been responsible for setting an organization’s mission and vision and approving its strategy. Currently, this includes oversight of AI initiatives. Whether it is endorsing investments in AI-powered analytics or reviewing the company’s use of generative AI tools, boards must ensure that AI aligns with organizational goals and values.

Corporate executives have long resented proxy advisers. Most notably, Jamie Dimon has called them “incompetent” and a “cancer”, while Elon Musk has argued that they “effectively control the stock market”. The vitriol reflects the long-standing tensions between corporate leaders and proxy advisers over executive pay and board oversight. CEOs understandably want more of the former and less of the latter, while proxy advisers often tilt the other way. Political attention has naturally followed. Business groups and Republican officials — especially in Texas — have criticised the companies for what they see as pushing a progressive agenda on environmental protection and diversity through their recommendations. This seemed to gain more traction than older complaints about errors and conflicts of interest. Against this backdrop, Glass Lewis — one of the two dominant proxy advisers alongside ISS — earlier this month said that it will stop making standardised recommendations to its customers. If institutional investors want advice on how to vote their shares, they’ll have to construct a customised policy.

Switzerland's UBS on Friday promoted Beatriz Martin to Chief Operating Officer as it announced management changes that included the nomination of UBS veteran Markus Ronner as vice chairman of the bank's board of directors next year. Martin is a Spaniard who heads the bank's non-core and legacy unit, which handles unwanted assets from Credit Suisse. Credit Suisse collapsed in 2023 and was then acquired by UBS. Her promotion may encourage speculation that she is among the top internal candidates to replace CEO Sergio Ermotti, who has indicated he plans to step down by early 2027 once the integration of Credit Suisse is concluded. As COO, Martin's responsibilities will involve finalizing the Credit Suisse integration, group operations, and overseeing the internal consulting and governance teams - tasks that have previously been spread more widely at the bank. Martin, who is based in London and has so far kept a relatively low profile at the bank, has drawn praise for her role at the non-core unit. She will remain the bank's president of EMEA and UK chief executive, UBS said in a statement.

Le géant américain Apple a perdu jeudi un procès à Londres pour « abus de position dominante » de son magasin d’applications au Royaume-Uni, qui pourrait le conduire à devoir rembourser des millions d’utilisateurs, mais le groupe conteste la décision et fera appel. Les demandeurs, qui se plaignaient notamment de commissions jugées trop élevées prélevées par Apple sur son App Store, avaient précédemment chiffré les dommages à plus de 1,5 milliard de livres (2,8 milliard de dollars CAN). Apple a « abusé de sa position dominante en empêchant la concurrence » sur la distribution d’applications et les services de paiement intégrés, mais aussi en facturant des commissions aux « prix excessifs et inéquitables », indique le jugement du Tribunal d’appel de la concurrence, consulté par l’AFP. Il s’agit de la deuxième déconvenue en deux jours au Royaume-Uni pour le groupe de Cupertino, qui a été désigné mercredi par l’autorité britannique de la concurrence (CMA) comme une « société stratégique » sur le marché des écosystèmes pour téléphones intelligents et tablettes en raison de sa position dominante.

U.S. President Donald Trump is going to Japan and South Korea next week to promote an epic financial windfall — at least US$900 billion in investments for U.S. factories, a natural gas pipeline and other projects. Japan and South Korea made those financial commitments in August to try to get Trump to ratchet down his planned tariff rates from 25 per cent to 15 per cent. But as the U.S. president is set to depart Friday night for Asia, the pledges are more of a loose end than money in the bank for American industry. Japan pledged US$550 billion in investments, but it wants the money to benefit its own companies, making that a condition in a memorandum released in September. As of Monday, Japan has a new prime minister, Sanae Takaichi, who has expressed respect for Trump but is operating in an untested coalition government. South Korea offered US$350 billion — but wants a swap line for U.S. dollars to facilitate its investments and seeks to fund the transactions through loan guarantees. Otherwise, the commitment could sink its own economy.

President Trump said late Thursday he was terminating trade negotiations with Canada, pointing to a television advertisement sponsored by the Ontario government that features Ronald Reagan speaking negatively about tariffs. “Based on their egregious behavior, ALL TRADE NEGOTIATIONS WITH CANADA ARE HEREBY TERMINATED,” Trump wrote on social media shortly before 11 p.m. The president claimed that Canada “fraudulently used an advertisement, which is FAKE, featuring Ronald Reagan speaking negatively about Tariffs.” Trump argued the ad was designed to interfere with the Supreme Court and other courts as they weigh the legality of his far-reaching tariffs. The threat to cut off negotiations is just the latest in a series of trade disputes between the U.S. and Canada—a monthslong saga that has seen Trump threaten to cut off talks before but eventually relenting after concessions from Ottawa. It comes two weeks after Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney visited Trump at the White House. While there were some signs of progress, no concrete agreement was announced.

U.S. President Donald Trump will test his deal-making prowess in a region battered by his hardball trade policies on a trip to Asia next week, as doubts hang over his highly anticipated meeting with China’s Xi Jinping. Trump, who leaves Washington on Friday night, is set for a five-day trip spanning Malaysia, Japan and South Korea, his first to the region and his longest journey abroad since taking office in January. The Republican leader hopes to pile up trade, business and ceasefire deals before turning to the toughest challenge, a face-to-face with Xi on Thursday in South Korea. The trip comes as Trump works to maintain the signature foreign policy achievement of his second term, a fragile ceasefire he helped strike in the Israel-Gaza conflict, while the Russian war in Ukraine rages and a trade war with China shows little sign of abating.

Le gouvernement fédéral limite immédiatement le nombre de véhicules automobiles exemptés de droits de douane que les entreprises Stellantis et General Motors (GM) peuvent importer des États-Unis pour les vendre au pays. Ottawa ne badine pas avec les récentes annonces de réduction de production d’automobiles au Canada par les deux géants américains et contre-attaque. Le gouvernement fédéral a confirmé tard jeudi soir avoir réduit de 24,2 % la part annuelle du contingent admissible à la remise des droits de General Motors et de 50 % celle de Stellantis. La décision entre en vigueur immédiatement. « Nous sommes profondément déçus par les récentes décisions de General Motors et Stellantis concernant la production. Ces décisions inacceptables contreviennent à leurs obligations légales envers le Canada et les travailleurs canadiens. C’est pourquoi nous réduisons leurs parts de la remise des droits à l’importation », a déclaré le ministre des Finances, François-Philippe Champagne.

Contrairement aux gouvernements fédéral et provincial, les contribuables québécois pourraient trouver leur compte, du moins en partie, dans la faillite de Recyclage Carbone Varennes (RCV), rachetée pour la somme dérisoire de 17,5 millions par le repreneur StormFisher. Québec était actionnaire à 24 % de RCV, des actions dont la valeur s’élevait à 117 millions au moment de l’investissement. Cette somme représente une perte sèche. Le reste des 365 millions engagés par Québec en prêts et subventions, soit 248 millions, et les engagements de 187 millions en subventions d’Ottawa, déjà engagés dans la construction du complexe de Varennes, en Montérégie, ne sont toutefois pas complètement perdus puisque StormFisher reprendra les travaux de construction pour compléter l’installation. Les prêts, évidemment, ne seront pas remboursés. Toujours en matière de fonds publics, la Banque de l’infrastructure du Canada (BIC) s’était engagée à prêter 277 millions à RCV, dont 210 millions avaient déjà été engagés.

The European Union has agreed on a new raft of sanctions against Russia targeting its shadow fleet of oil tankers and banning its imports of liquefied natural gas, the Danish EU presidency announced Thursday. “Today is a good day for Europe and Ukraine,” Danish Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen said in a statement, as EU leaders were gathering for a summit in Brussels. He said that the new sanctions “will introduce new and comprehensive measures on oil and gas, the shadow fleet and Russia’s financial sector.” A new system for limiting the movement of Russian diplomats within the 27-nation EU will also be introduced. The move comes a day after U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration announced new sanctions against Russia’s oil industry that are aimed at moving Russian President Vladimir Putin to the negotiating table and ending Moscow’s war on Ukraine.

U.S. President Donald Trump hit Russia's two biggest oil companies with sanctions in a sharp policy shift on Moscow's war in Ukraine, prompting global oil prices to rise by nearly 5% on Thursday and India to consider cutting Russian imports. The sanctions target oil giants Rosneft and Lukoil, which between them account for more than 5% of global oil output, and mark a dramatic U-turn by Trump, who said only last week that he and Russian President Vladimir Putin would soon hold a summit in Budapest to try to end the war in Ukraine. While the extent of the financial hit on Russia may be limited in the short term, the move is a powerful signal of Trump's intent to squeeze Russia's finances and try to force the Kremlin towards a peace deal. It has already prompted Chinese state oil majors to suspend Russian oil purchases in the short term, trade sources told Reuters. Refiners in India, the largest buyer of seaborne Russian oil, are set to sharply cut their crude imports.