Making sense of the markets this week: March 5, 2023 Mar 3rd

Canadian banks take rising costs and recovery dividend in stride

There is no shortage of headwinds for Canadian banks at the moment. Uncertainty around interest rates is holding back economic activity and causing Canada’s lenders to increase loan-loss provisions. The Canadian government is charging banks an extra 15% tax for the year in order to take $3 billion in earnings. Finally, employees want a lot more money to pay for things that cost a lot more to live.

Oh, and it turns out the North American courts don’t like it when banks are involved with “shady activity,” such as selling 2008 fraudulent U.S.-housing securities or taking part in Ponzi schemes. I mean, as long as you pay for a settlement, the courts will say “there was no admitted wrongdoing,” but it still does sting a bit.

So, what do you do if you’re a Canadian bank?

Well, you simply get down to business and earn more money of course…