The Dog Days of Summer

With the ink not yet dry on the Canada-US trade agreement, Frank attempts to separate signal from noise in analyzing winners and losers in bi-lateral trade negotiations between the two countries. With an all-out trade war, the worst possible outcome and zero tariffs unrealistic, Prime Minister Carney and his small negotiating team have worked tirelessly to ensure every constituency in Canada suffers a little bit of pain but none of them feel like they were hung out to dry to get a deal done. That said, the devil remains in the detail on topics such as digital alignment, whatever that means when the final agreement is published. Frank sounds the alarm bell for business leaders, many of whom will be in Toronto in September for Prime Minister Carney's Canada Investing Summit, about the back up in long-term interest rates and wonders why this topic is not getting more airtime. He finishes with a quick summary on the wars in Iran and Ukraine and strikes a slightly bullish tone on the Blue Jays. This podcast was recorded on August 20, 2026. Chapter Headings 00:26 - Carney and Trump Hammer out Trade Agreement 07:13 - What Does Digital Alignment Mean? 20:13 - Carney Attempts to Thread Needle with Provinces 22:19 - Why Back Up in Long Rates Is Not Getting Attention from Business Leaders 29:44 - Canada to Take Centre Stage of Investing World with Economic Summits 37:39 - Two Wars with No End in Sight