Canada's Drill
Thursday, October 9th, 2025
World News - Keystone XL Deal?
Bloomberg
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney proposed reviving the Keystone XL pipeline and deepening energy cooperation with the US during his meeting with President Donald Trump on Tuesday, as part of negotiations to reduce the 50% tariffs on Canadian steel and aluminum. The discussion, which lasted over two hours at the White House, also covered potential collaboration on electricity exports and uranium production, with Trump appearing receptive to linking energy projects to progress on metals tariffs. However, while both sides directed their teams to conclude negotiations “in the coming weeks,” a concrete timeline remains uncertain, and Trump has indicated he’s seeking a “comprehensive” deal with maximalist demands before offering any tariff relief.
Tech - Uncertainty About Gemini’s Bundling With Google’s Products
Bloomberg
Google is fighting to preserve its ability to bundle its Gemini AI service with YouTube and Google Maps, arguing before Judge Amit Mehta that it lacks monopoly power in artificial intelligence, despite the judge’s previous ruling that the company illegally monopolized search and advertising markets. The Justice Department wants Gemini subject to the same bundling restrictions Mehta imposed on Google’s Search, Chrome, and Play Store—which bar the company from paying for exclusive placement—citing concerns that Google would leverage its dominance in maps and video to force device makers to preload Gemini. While Google’s lawyer compared the practice to Microsoft bundling its CoPilot AI with Office software, Mehta expressed skepticism about allowing Google to use its market “leverage” to boost its AI service, though he hasn’t indicated when he’ll issue a final ruling.
The Market - S&P With Fresh New Highs
Bloomberg
Wall Street stocks surged to fresh all-time highs as dip buyers powered a rebound in the S&P 500, which has now climbed over 35% from its April lows and is approaching the three-year anniversary of the current bull market that has nearly doubled the index since October 2022. The rally, driven by AI enthusiasm, corporate resilience, and Federal Reserve rate cuts, pushed the S&P 500 above 6,750 despite growing concerns about a potential bubble, with Nvidia leading megacap gains after CEO Jensen Huang reported extremely high demand for Blackwell chips. While some strategists warn about excessive valuations and market concentration—tech now comprises 35% of the S&P 500, similar to the dotcom peak—others argue current AI-driven growth is supported by robust earnings rather than pure speculation, with the market remaining remarkably calm and volatility subdued since August even as investors navigate tariff concerns and a government shutdown.
Canada - Drill Baby Drill
British Columbia is rapidly transforming into a natural gas powerhouse, with production expected to surge 41% to 10.6 billion cubic feet per day by 2030—surpassing energy giants like Algeria and the UAE—as global demand drives an unprecedented drilling boom that saw 651 wells approved in the first half of 2025, the most since 2008. The catalyst is the opening of Canada’s first LNG export terminal, Shell-led LNG Canada, which began operations in June with capacity to ship nearly 2 billion cubic feet daily to Asia, prompting Premier David Eby to reverse his earlier stance against new fossil fuel infrastructure as the province faces credit downgrades and economic stagnation. While environmental advocates condemn the expansion—noting methane’s potent greenhouse impact and the region’s climate-fueled wildfires—the drilling has brought economic relief to communities like Dawson Creek, though a temporary oversupply recently turned Western Canadian gas prices briefly negative, causing some producers to defer operations until export capacity increases.
The Daily Spark
Quote of the Day
“As long as you are going to be thinking anyway, think big.”
― Donald Trump