The summer will heat up with some critical economic announcements from around the world this week. Amid trade tensions, markets are carefully monitoring economic data to see if tariffs are having an impact on global economic activity. Late last week, US President Donald Trump said he would be sending tariff letters to certain countries, outlining new tariffs set for August 1. This raised investor nervousness on Friday. Along with economic announcements, it’ll be important to monitor any potential policy changes from major economies around the world.

• Statistics Canada will release Canada’s labour market data for June on Friday. In May, the economy added just 8,800 jobs, with economists estimating 1,500 job losses in June. Canada’s unemployment rate reached 7.0% in May, its highest level since 2001.
• South of the border, the US Federal Reserve Board (Fed) will release its meeting minutes on Wednesday. The Fed held steady at a target range of 4.25%–4.50%, opting to keep monitoring the impact of tariffs on the US economy. The Fed makes its next rate decision on July 30.
• Looking abroad, European retail sales will be announced today, China’s inflation rate on Tuesday, Japan’s producer prices on Wednesday and UK gross domestic product on Friday.
• There will be relatively few earnings announcements this week. Key earnings in Canada include Aritzia and MTY Food Group. Notable earnings in the US include Conagra Brands and Delta.

Trade tensions will garner plenty of attention this week as the US sends tariff letters to certain economies, which might provide some details on how high tariffs might be. In Canada, the labour market will dominate the headlines late in the week. The labour market has slowed in 2025, due in part to trade and economic uncertainty. Canada continues to work on a trade deal with the US, aiming to reach an agreement by July 21.

If you would like to discuss this economic and market update or have questions about your finances and investments, please feel free to contact me anytime.