The morning began with a stunning resignation: Chrystia Freeland announced her resignation as Deputy Prime Minister and head of the Finance department the very day Canada’s Fall Economic Statement (FES) was announced. Only a few journalists stayed until the mini-budget was released in the mid afternoon. Canada’s National Observer stuck it out to bring you the biggest climate takeaways while Canada stares down the threat of a Trump tariff wall. The accelerated investment incentive — a tax credit system that gives businesses a tax break for investments in machinery and equipment — accounts for about three quarters of the new spending in the FES, David Macdonald, senior economist for the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, told Canada’s National Observer. The program was developed by Freeland’s predecessor Bill Morneau and was due to ramp down in the coming years. The tax credit is being topped up to a total value of $17 billion over five years starting in 2025-26, up from the $35 million that will be spent this fiscal year, effectively extending the program through the decade. To put it in perspective, the extension is more than 10 times the $1.6-billion GST tax holiday, Macdonald said. The announced fund includes additional green investment with a 100-per-cent tax deduction for climate-friendly machinery and equipment purchases like electric vehicles. But the program also opens the door for further tax breaks for the oil and gas industry, including oil and gas property expenses, according to the FES. “A major beneficiary of it is, generally, the oil and gas sector, one of the biggest capital investors in the country,” Macdonald said. “The equipment that you buy to extract more oil from the oilsands, you can write that off more quickly.” Macdonald questioned whether these measures would insulate the economic shock a Trump tariff regime could bring, arguing that “continued corporate tax break isn’t going to make any difference.” “If there’s a 25-per-cent tariff wall — if that’s the test — I think it’s going to fail pretty badly,” Macdonald said. Instead of an insulator from tariff shocks, he said the fund acts as a “huge gift to the corporate sector.” Methane pyrolysis is now grouped under Ottawa’s investments into clean hydrogen, opening the door to use gas reserves for cleaner fuels. The Clean Hydrogen Investment Tax Credit is a refundable tax credit that supports the cost of eligible equipment used in clean hydrogen production. It is expected to cost $43.5 million over five years, starting in 2025. Support varies between 15 and 40 per cent of eligible expenses based on the hydrogen’s assessed carbon intensity, with projects that produce the cleanest hydrogen receiving the highest levels of support. Methane pyrolysis is a nascent method of splitting methane molecules into solid hydrogen and carbon — which is controversial because, although it reduces emissions, it still releases some and encourages the continued production of gas. A senior finance official told Canada’s National Observer that development of the technology has the potential to replace some of the need for carbon capture, utilization and storage. Equipment used to convert clean hydrogen to ammonia may also be eligible for a 15 per cent tax credit. Labour requirements must be met to receive maximum credit rates. The economic statement included more information about the design and implementation of the Electric Vehicle Supply Chain tax credit to further incentivize Canadian corporations to invest in the growth of Canada’s EV industry. This 10 per cent refundable tax credit would require investment in three segments of the supply chain, including EV assembly, battery production and cathode active material production. To be eligible, corporations will have to acquire at least $100 million dollars in property, which includes buildings, structures and their component parts, eligible for the Clean Technology Manufacturing Investment Tax Credit in EV assembly, battery production and cathode production for a total of $300 million in investment, with some wiggle room for subsidiary companies that do two of the above. The credit will be granted for property which are acquired and in use on or after Jan. 1, 2024. The tax credit will be maintained for nearly a decade before being reduced to five per cent for 2033 and by 2034, it will no longer be in effect. Following the Supreme Court’s decision to deem the federal Impact Assessment Act unconstitutional, Ottawa now intends to change the regulations governing what kinds of projects are subject to a federal assessment. A senior finance official said the changes are “potentially significant” for major projects seeking approvals. Ottawa plans to allow for regulators like the Canada Energy Regulator, Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission and offshore petroleum boards to be the sole approver of projects, side-stepping the federal impact assessment processes. For example, the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission alone could apply for certain brownfield nuclear projects, rather than requiring a federal impact assessment. The federal government will deliver Indigenous loan guarantees through a newly-formed, wholly-owned subsidiary of the Canada Development Investment Corporation. The subsidiary will operate as the Canada Indigenous Loan Guarantee Corporation. Loans will be worth between $20 million and $1 billion and can apply to any sector. Ottawa will be announcing the first Indigenous loan guarantees in the near term. Matteo Cimellaro / Canada’s National Observer / Local Journalism Initiative
Percentages: FG .407, FT .850. 3-Point Goals: 7-19, .368 (Smith 2-4, Folgueiras 1-2, Omojafo 1-2, Woods 1-2, Sandlin-El 1-3, Prather 1-5, Dickerson 0-1). Team Rebounds: 2. Team Turnovers: None. Blocked Shots: None. Turnovers: 13 (Woods 7, Dickerson 2, Miller, Prather, Sandlin-El, Smith). Steals: 6 (Prather 2, Woods 2, Sandlin-El, Smith). Technical Fouls: None. Percentages: FG .518, FT .864. 3-Point Goals: 7-16, .438 (Clayton 2-6, Hadaway 1-1, Paveletzke 1-1, Searls 1-1, James 1-2, Sheldon 1-4, Brown 0-1). Team Rebounds: 4. Team Turnovers: None. Blocked Shots: 3 (Clayton 2, Searls). Turnovers: 12 (Searls 5, Paveletzke 3, Hadaway 2, Brown, Sheldon). Steals: 9 (Brown 3, Searls 2, Sheldon 2, Clayton, James). Technical Fouls: None. .China's consumer prices rose less-than-expected in November, climbing 0.2% from a year ago, according to data from the National Bureau of Statistics released Monday. Analysts polled by Reuters had expected a slight pickup in the consumer price index to 0.5% in November from a year ago, versus 0.3% in October. China's producer price index declined for the 26th month. Producer inflation fell by 2.5% year on year in November, less than the estimated 2.8% decline as per the Reuters poll. China's consumer prices rose less-than-expected in November, climbing 0.2% from a year ago, according to data from the National Bureau of Statistics released Monday. Analysts polled by Reuters had expected a slight pickup in consumer prices to 0.5% in November from a year ago, versus 0.3% in October. China's producer price index declined for the 26th month. Producer inflation fell by 2.5% year on year in November, less than the estimated 2.8% decline as per the Reuters poll. The persistent near-zero inflation shows that China is still grappling with sluggish domestic demand and deflation at the wholesale level. This is in spite of Beijing's slate of stimulus efforts since September which has included interest rate cuts, support for the stock and property markets as well as efforts to boost bank lending. "We believe deflation will continue in China, especially based on the previous experience during trade wars," said Becky Liu, head of China macro strategy at Standard Chartered Bank, drawing reference to the ongoing trade war between China and the U.S. "Inflation, especially PPI inflation, typically falls to negative territory during such periods and this time we see no exception," she said. Liu said China's producer price index inflation will likely remain negative throughout 2025. Goldman Sachs similarly expects near-zero CPI figures to persist in China next year, the investment bank's analysts wrote in a note dated Dec. 6. However, other tenets of China's economy have shown some signs of recovery. The world's second-largest economy reported strong growth in October's retail sales , beating Reuters' expectations. China's manufacturing activity also expanded for two months in a row . Top leaders in the country are set to convene at the annual Central Economic Work Conference starting Wednesday to outline economic goals and stimulus measures for 2025. On Monday, Fitch Ratings revised down its 2025 Chinese GDP growth forecast to 4.3% from 4.5%. The credit rating agency also adjusted its 2026 growth projections to 4.0%, down from 4.3% in September. "For 2025 and 2026, we assume that U.S. trade policy towards China will take a sharp protectionist turn," Fitch Ratings Chief Economist Brian Coulton wrote in the report. While there are "tentative signs of stabilization" in the country's real estate sector, an extended downturn in the property market poses a key risk to the agency's forecast. China is also due to report its trade data for November on Tuesday, and retail sales figures next Monday.The last man to face, and beat, Rafael Nadal in professional tennis, 80th-ranked Botic van de Zandschulp, converted his 10th match point Friday to finally close out a 6-4, 6-7 (12), 6-3 victory over Daniel Altmaier and help the Netherlands reach its first Davis Cup final by sweeping Germany. Tallon Griekspoor, who is ranked 40th, sealed the 2-0 win for the Dutch in the best-of-three-match semifinal by hitting 25 aces and coming back to defeat Jan-Lennard Struff 6-7 (4), 7-5, 6-4. When it ended, appropriately, on an ace, Griekspoor shut his eyes, dropped to his knees and spread his arms wide. "We have been talking about this for two, three years," Griekspoor said. "We believed in ourselves so much. We always felt like this was possible. To do it now feels unbelievable." The other semifinal is Saturday, with No. 1-ranked Jannik Sinner and defending champion Italy taking on Australia in Malaga, Spain. The championship will be decided Sunday. "We don't have that top-five player. We don't that top-10 player. We don't have that top-15 player," Dutch captain Paul Harhuuis said. "But it's a team effort. So proud of these guys." In Friday's opener, van de Zandschulp was up a set and just a point away from leading 5-2 in the second when Altmaier began playing more aggressively and interacting more with the German fans, yelling and throwing uppercuts or raising his arms after key points. In the tiebreaker, Altmaier managed to save five match points before converting his own fourth set point to extend the contest. But van de Zandschulp, who upset four-time Grand Slam champion Carlos Alcaraz at the U.S. Open, quickly moved out front in the final set, even if he eventually needed five more match points in the last game before serving it out. "At some point, I didn't know what to do any more on the match points," van de Zandschulp said. "I had the toughest match of my life on Tuesday [against Nadal] so everything that comes next is maybe a little bit easier." Amazing scenes with the @KNLTB fans 🧡😍#DavisCup pic.twitter.com/TZr4gXA56n — @DavisCup In the quarterfinals, van de Zandschulp outplayed Nadal for a 6-4, 6-4 result that marked the end of the 22-time Grand Slam champion's career because the Netherlands went on to eliminate Spain 2-1. Sinner leads Italy back to Davis Cup semifinals and a rematch against Australia An emotional Rafael Nadal retires at the Davis Cup after he loses and Spain is eliminated The 38-year-old Nadal announced last month the Davis Cup would be his final event before retiring. Presumably because people purchased tickets ahead of time with plans to watch Nadal compete in the semifinals, there were hundreds of unoccupied blue or gray seats surrounding the indoor hard court at the Palacio de Deportes Jose Maria Martina Carpena in southern Spain on Friday. Now truly a neutral site, the place was not nearly as loud and rowdy as on Tuesday, although there were shouts of "Vamos, Rafa!" that drew laughter while van de Zandschulp played the 88th-ranked Altmaier. It took Griekspoor more than 75 minutes and nearly two full sets to figure out how to break No. 43 Struff and then did it twice in a row to lead 6-5 in the second set, and then go up 1-0 in the third. That was plenty, because Griekspoor saved the only two break points he faced. The Netherlands hadn't been to the semifinals since 2001. The Germans, whose best current player, two-time major finalist Alexander Zverev, is not on the team in Malaga, have won three Davis Cups, but not since 1993, when 1991 Wimbledon champion Michael Stich led them to the title. WATCH | Canada eliminated in Malaga with Shapovalov loss to German opponent : Shapovalov falls to Struff as Germany eliminates Canada in the Davis Cup quarterfinals 2 days ago Duration 2:27 After Montreal's Gabriel Diallo lost to Daniel Altmaier in the opening rubber of the Davis Cup Final quarterfinals in Malaga, Spain, Jan-Lennard Struff beat Denis Shapovalov of Richmond Hill, Ont., 4-6, 7-5, 7-6(5) to eliminate Canada.
Trump says he can't guarantee tariffs won't raise prices, won't rule out revenge prosecutions