Bruce Campbell’s Top Picks for Oct. 19, 2026

Published: October 19, 2026 at 2:57p.m. EDTLourenco Goncalves, chairman, president, and chief executive officer of Cleveland-Cliffs, joins BNN Bloomberg to discuss the Stelco layoffs and steel tariffs. The chief executive of Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. says Stelco has posted its strongest quarterly results since the Ohio-based company acquired the steelmaker two years ago, even as it moves ahead with up to 500 layoffs at its Ontario operations. Lourenco Goncalves says Stelco became a “positive contributor” to Cleveland-Cliffs’ third-quarter results for the period ended Sept. 30 amid a sharp improvement in Canada’s hot-rolled steel market. However, he says more needs to be done by the Canadian government to correct “a clearly oversupplied market for galvanized steel in Canada.”Latest updates on company news hereGoncalves says without a clear plan from Ottawa aimed at improving market conditions for galvanized steel, the company made the “difficult but necessary” decision to indefinitely idle its galvanizing lines at Stelco. He says laid off workers will be called back as soon as the current situation improves.

Published: October 19, 2026 at 2:40p.m. EDTSAN FRANCISCO — A former OpenAI engineer charged with secretly installing a recording device in a conference room to glean company details had been “mere days” away from absconding to Saudi Arabia before his arrest, federal prosecutors said in new court filings. Abdulrahman Alfozan, a 35-year-old Saudi national, was also fired from his job at the ChatGPT maker, according to a government memo filed Sunday. His wife and young son left the country the day after his arrest on a one-way ticket booked and paid for by a Saudi military official, prosecutors said in the filing. “Ultimately, the defendant has little incentive to remain in the United States to see this case through,” federal prosecutors wrote. “He has ample resources —including his significant compensation from a decade of high-tech employment in the Bay Area and at least two bank accounts in Saudi Arabia — and what appears to be considerable support from a foreign government.”Prosecutors also noted Saudi Arabia has no extradition treaty with the U. S. as they seek to detain Alfozan until trial. A judge will consider the request Monday in federal court in San Francisco.

Published: October 19, 2026 at 1:59p.m. EDTOTTAWA — A federal union is speaking out against cuts to the federal translation bureau and is accusing the Carney government of hypocrisy as Ottawa defends French language standards in trade talks with the U. S. The translation bureau is a federal government service under Public Services and Procurement Canada that provides translation and interpretation services to departments and private clients. A government document containing highlights of the translation bureau’s business plan for 2025 to 2030 says the bureau plans to drop 339 employees through natural attrition over five years to ensure its financial viability. Attrition is the gradual reduction of positions through retirements and resignations. The document says the plan reflects “an overall drop” in demand for traditional translation services.

Published: October 19, 2026 at 1:01p.m. EDTMONTRÉAL — The head of Quebec’s maple syrup producers’ association says the province’s strategic syrup reserve has run dry amid high demand for the product. Québec Maple Syrup Producers President Luc Goulet says government support will be needed to ensure the industry doesn’t miss out on opportunities to grow the sector. Maple syrup yields depend on weather conditions. As a result, the producers’ association has established a strategic reserve to ensure prices and supply remain relatively stable. Last year, U. S. commercial customers stocked up, fearing that President Donald Trump would carry out his threat to impose tariffs. Goulet says the buffer has been exhausted as sales continue to rise. “Our strategic reserve has been reduced to zero,” Goulet said in an interview at the release of a report on the industry’s economic benefits. That means the industry could lose customers if weather conditions are less favourable for maple sap flow, he said. Goulet cites the stock shortages in 2007 and 2008 as an example. “We lost some markets because the product wasn’t available,” Goulet said.

EconomicsPublished: October 19, 2026 at 12:16p.m. EDTBNN Bloomberg is Canada’s definitive source for business news dedicated exclusively to helping Canadians invest and build their businesses. OTTAWA — The Bank of Canada’s latest outlook survey suggested that business sentiment improved on average in the third quarter, although concerns remained about rising costs and the war in the Middle East. However, the central bank said about three-quarters of the interviews with businesses for the survey took place before trade talks between Canada and the United States broke down at the end of August and new Canadian counter-tariffs were announced. It says after the trade talks broke down, firms cited new U. S. tariffs on some goods and Canadian counter‑tariffs as factors weighing on their outlooks. Latest economic news on BNNBloomberg.caThe Bank of Canada says inflation expectations have risen alongside the new tariffs and the recent increase in energy prices. It added that the tariffs are also dampening business sentiment, weakening outlooks for exports and investment and putting upward pressure on costs and prices.

Published: October 19, 2026 at 11:37a.m. EDTHomeowners may be tempted to take the mortgage rate offered in a renewal letter, but savvy borrowers see it as the start of a negotiation process that could lead to big savings. With many borrowers now renewing at rates above what they previously locked in, mortgage professionals say the worst move is signing whatever arrives in the mail. The best results come from starting early, shopping around, and comparing more than the headline rate. Kola Ifabumuyi, a certified mortgage planner with Mortgage Architects, suggests starting about four months out from your renewal date, or earlier for self-employed borrowers or anyone whose income has changed. He advises homeowners to gather their mortgage statement and renewal offer, check how many years remain on the amortization, and decide what monthly payment they can afford. Anyone considering switching lenders should also start pulling together income documents. Personal plans matter as well. For instance, when Ifabumuyi worked with a homeowner planning to sell soon after renewal, they focused on what the mortgage would cost until the sale and what it would cost to break the contract.