A turbulent October has just ended on a high note, for what it’s worth.
The late-game performance among North American indices wasn’t enough to stop the first three-month losing streak among many indices since 2020. November seems to be off to a solid start as markets on both sides of the border have logged solid gains.
Traders have welcomed the Federal Reserve’s latest move to keep rates steady in a range of 5.25 per cent to 5.5 per cent. The energy market has also been in focus this week, with fluctuating oil and gas prices, as well as Europe continuing to reduce its reliance on imported Russian fuel.
Québec-focused Critical Elements Lithium Corp. (TSXV:CRE, Forum) has obtained a Transport Canada dewatering exemption necessary to develop the Rose Lithium-Tantalum Project.
This move, side-stepping the Canadian Navigable Waters Act, impacts 28 navigable waters either on top of, or around the perimeter of the future open pit mine site for the project in Québec.
The Act prohibits taking any action, such as dewatering, that lowers the water level of a navigable water or any part of a navigable water to a level that extinguishes navigation for vessels, unless the Minister of Transport receives an application for an exemption and the Governor in Council is satisfied that it would be in the public interest to permit the dewatering that extinguishes navigation.
Despite the dewatering, the company stated that it has taken measures relevant to navigation to assist in safeguarding indigenous trapping rights, such as relocation of a camp used for trapping and a beaver management plan. The team added that the territory can be accessed by additional methods such as snowmobiles or all-terrain vehicles.
“This is a step further towards the development of the Rose Lithium-Tantalum Project which allows us to continue planning for the work coming ahead,” Jean-Sébastien Lavallée, CEO of Critical Elements Lithium, said in a statement. “I am confident that the mitigation measures we have elaborated, and which have been accepted will allow us to minimize the impact of our activities on the environment and on local communities and particularly the Cree Nation of Eastmain.”
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Canada’s largest airline, Air Canada Inc. (TSX:AC, Forum) reported its Q3 2023 financial results, highlighting an operational revenue increase of C$6.34 billion, or 19 per cent, compared with Q3 2022.
In a news release, the airline company stated more passengers contributed to its Q3 growth, which included operation capacity increasing by 10 per cent compared with the same period last year.
Operating expenses of $4.92 billion also increased by $251 million compared with Q3 2022.
“Our focus on growing our international network, building scale at our hubs and leveraging our solid partnerships is delivering strong results,” Michael Rousseau, CEO of Air Canada, said in a statement. “Viewed sequentially, Air Canada’s progressive performance to date proves the success of its strategy to grow back the airline and improve operational stability, while mitigating risks.”
Air Canada also said its operating income of $1.4 billion, with an operating margin of 22.3 per cent, improved by $771 million from Q3 2022.
Meanwhile, adjusted net income of $1.28 billion improved $850 million from the third quarter of 2022.
Looking to the horizon, Air Canada said for Q4 2023 it plans to increase its available seat miles capacity by 10 per cent compared with the same period last year.
Investors engaged with the energy market will have Baytex Energy Corp. (TSX:BTE, Forum) in their sights as the company releases its Q3 2023 financial and operating results after Thursday’s close. The following day, a conference call and webcast will be held to discuss the results.
The Calgary-based energy company is coming off a busy Q2 2023, which saw cash flows from operating activities at C$192 million ($0.33 per basic share), up from $184 million reported in Q1, but down from C$310 million in Q3 2022.
Baytex produced 89,71 barrels of oil equivalent per day (boe/d) in Q2 2023 (86 per cent oil and natural gas liquids). In Q2, Baytex also closed the acquisition of Ranger Oil Corp. at a bargain $2.4 billion, which enhanced its 2023 guidance to guide the team to expect to generate more than C$400 million of free cash flow in the second half of this year, and approximately C$500 million of free cash flow for the full-year.
As we continue into November with focus, an extra hour of sleep courtesy of the end of Daylight Savings Time, and a fresh batch of market activity to dissect, it feels as if every week has been a roller coaster of news and findings. The next should prove to be no different, so expect the Bullboards to be as lively as ever. We can only capture small fragments of the large dialogue at the Bullboards, so don’t forget to come back to the Bullboards throughout the week to see how the conversations change.
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