Welcome to The Globe and Mail’s business and investing news quiz. Join us each week to test your knowledge of the stories making the headlines. Our business reporters come up with the questions, and you can show us what you know.
This week: Nvidia Corp.’s net income rose more than sevenfold compared with a year earlier, jumping to US$14.88-billion in its first quarter from US$2.04-billion in 2023. The company makes chips used to support artificial intelligence and its profits have soared alongside interest in the nascent technology. In less flashy news, the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board said its total assets under management increased to $632-billion in the fiscal year ended March 31, as the fund added $46-billion of investment income and almost $16-billion of new contributions from Canadian workers. There was also big news that likely excited Taylor Swift.
Also: TD, Red Lobster and the Argentine President had rough weeks, for very different reasons.
a. Less than 2 per cent. Surprise! Food prices in April were a mere 1.4 per cent higher than a year ago, Statistics Canada says. The rapid slowdown in food inflation over the past year has helped pull down overall inflation, but most people still appear to be reeling from the big price increases of 2022 and early 2023, when grocery prices rose as fast as 11 per cent year-over-year.
b. Outside advisory firms are endorsing the dissidents. Two prominent proxy advisory firms – Glass Lewis and Institutional Shareholder Services – are both recommending that investors back dissidents' demand that former Gildan chief executive Glenn Chamandy be reinstated. It is highly unusual for dissident shareholders to win such whole-hearted endorsements: Proxy advisers typically back incumbents or recommend compromise solutions.
c. It’s up US$1-trillion. Nvidia’s stock price has doubled this year, increasing the business’s stock market value by more than US$1-trillion. Nvidia, which dominates the market for AI chips, has surged past Amazon and Alphabet to become the world’s third most valuable public company, trailing only Microsoft and Apple.
c. Overhaul its risk controls. The Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions spotted deficiencies in TD’s risk controls during a recent assessment, according to people familiar with the matter. In what TD says is an unrelated matter, the bank has set aside hundreds of millions of dollars to cover financial penalties it faces in the United States for weaknesses in its anti-money-laundering systems.
d. All the above. Mr. Boesky parlayed a US$700,000 inheritance into a fortune estimated at more than US$200-million, thanks in part to profits made on illegal insider trading tips. After he was caught, he agreed to co-operate with Mr. Giuliani and helped snare Michael Milken, the junk bond king.
b. Its endless shrimp strategy. Red Lobster made endless shrimp a permanent menu item last year. The move swelled the chain's costs, which added to the company’s other problems, and resulted in the Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing.
c. Said she was “corrupt.” Spain promptly recalled its ambassador to Argentina after Mr. Milei's remarks about Begona Gomez, wife of Spain’s left-wing prime minister Pedro Sanchez.
a. Live Nation Entertainment. The Justice Department says Live Nation, the parent of Ticketmaster, drives up ticket prices for live events by squelching competition. The government’s attempt to break up Live Nation is the latest move by the Biden administration to crack down on businesses that it argues have too much market power in the United States. In March, the U.S. government filed suit against Apple, saying the tech giant enjoys an effective monopoly in smartphones.
d. The CPPIB did significantly worse. CPPIB’s returns were way behindway behind the 19.9 per cent achieved by the passive portfolio last year. But let’s be fair: Over the past 10 years, CPPIB’s returns have been nearly identical to that of the reference portfolio.
d. About 4,000. About 4,300 to be precise, according to Renee Jones, a law professor at Boston College, who spoke at a regulatory event in Toronto this week. The dramatic fall in public companies may be one reason that at least some institutional investors seem to be losing interest in public markets.
a. To help spot forest fires. The cameras are part of an effort to deal with the impact of climate change. The province’s wildfire service and researchers at the University of British Columbia hope the program will help identify fires early, when they can be most easily extinguished.
b. 60 per cent. The Bank of Canada’s Financial Stability Report warned earlier this month that households’ vulnerability to increased loan payments is one of the main risks to the stability of Canada's financial system.