HEADLINES

Maple Leaf Foods Shares Rise on Profit, Revenue Growth

Shares of Maple Leaf Foods advanced after the consumer-packaged meats and food production company's profit rose thanks to higher prices and an increase in sales of its prepared foods and poultry offerings.

The stock rose 5.6% to C$28.31.

Net income rose in the fourth quarter to C$391.2 million, or C$3.14 a share, up from C$53.5 million, or C$0.43 a share, in the comparable period a year ago. On an adjusted basis, earnings were C$0.32 a share, topping forecasts of C$0.26 a share.

Sales rose to C$991.2 million from C$917.1 million, and topped analyst expectations of a more modest rise to C$986.9 million. The rise was supported by a 6.1% increase in prepared foods and 13% boost in poultry sales.

Senior Canada Trade Official Set for Washington Visit for USMCA Talks

Canada's minister in charge of U.S.-Canada trade will head to Washington Friday for talks on the pending White House review of the existing trilateral North American trade pact.

A spokesman for Dominic LeBlanc confirmed his trip, which will mark one of the first face-to-face discussions on trade in about five months between senior White House officials and senior Canadian cabinet ministers. Talks between Ottawa and Washington last fall on a pact to either reduce or scrap tariffs on certain Canadian sectors fell apart amid President Trump's displeasure with anti-tariff advertising on U.S. airwaves paid for by the province of Ontario.

LeBlanc had signaled last week a meeting with U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer was in the works. Efforts to revitalize trade talks between Ottawa and Washington are unfolding as the Canadian economy continues to struggle under the weight of hefty tariffs of up to 50% on key sectors such as steel, aluminum and motor vehicles. Trade tension has escalated between U.S. and Canada since mid-January, after Prime Minister Mark Carney struck a deal with China that lowers tariffs on Chinese-made electric vehicles and delivered a speech in Switzerland that was widely interpreted as a rebuke of the Trump administration's trade and foreign policy.

Abandoning USMCA Would Come At a Cost for Canada and U.S.

Spin Master to Grow Melissa & Doug Abroad, Diversify Supply Chain

Spin Master is moving Melissa & Doug's supply chain away from China and expanding its brand into European retail to rebuild its hardest tariff-hit business.

The toy maker is focusing on expanding the Melissa & Doug line to new European markets and rebuilding its retail presence in the U.S. as part of a broader plan to return the brand to profitability, Chief Executive Christina Miller said on an analyst call on Thursday.

Melissa & Doug, which produces wooden and educational toys for young children, has been particularly exposed to tariffs because much of its manufacturing has historically been based in China, while sales have been concentrated mainly in the U.S.

Spin Master Says Consumers, Retailers Most Affected by Tariffs Than Company

Canadian Natural Resources Lifts Dividend After Rise in Quarterly Production

Canadian Natural Resources bumped up its dividend after seeing increased production in the final quarter of 2025 and predicting an increase to its output this year.

The Canadian energy company, which has a portfolio of assets in North America, the U.K. North Sea and offshore Africa, said its board approved a 6.4% increase to the quarterly payout, which will mark 2026 as the 26th consecutive year the dividend has been increased.

Canadian Natural said it also has adjusted its net debt target as part of its free cash flow allocation policy, which will increase shareholder returns through share buybacks.

Canada Says OpenAI CEO Altman Pledged to Toughen Safety Protocols

Canada says OpenAI Chief Executive Sam Altman has agreed to take immediate steps to strengthen safety protocols regarding notifying police about potentially suspicious use of the company's ChatGPT chatbot.

Artificial Intelligence Minister Evan Solomon added that he also asked Altman to apply these changes retroactively and to review previous incidents that may have been referred to law enforcement for further investigation.

Solomon's office issued a statement late Wednesday night summarizing a virtual meeting earlier in the day between the minister and the OpenAI CEO. The government is seeking changes to how OpenAI and other digital platforms operate following The Wall Street Journal reporting that indicated company employees raised alarm bells about interactions with ChatGPT in 2025 involving an individual whom police identified last month as a suspect in a fatal school shooting in Tumbler Ridge, British Columbia.

Vizsla Silver Says Two More Workers From Mexico Site Confirmed Dead

Two more workers taken from a Vizsla Silver project site in Mexico have been confirmed dead, taking the total to seven, as three remain missing.

The Canadian mining company said Thursday that two additional families of workers had received news of the deaths.

Vizsla said it remained focused on efforts to locate the missing workers and that it was cooperating fully with Mexican authorities as search efforts and the broader investigation proceed.

TALKING POINT

MDA Space CEO Says Defense Spending Driving Demand for Space Systems

By Adriano Marchese

Rising defense spending and geopolitical tensions are driving demand for satellite-based surveillance and communications, providing a boost to companies such as Canada's MDA Space.

The company's Chief Executive Officer Mike Greenley said that governments are increasingly treating space as a critical military domain, with capabilities such as satellite communications, earth observation and others proving important to monitoring activity and supporting operations.

"Each nation is increasing its defense spend and focusing more on itself, taking care of its own security and sovereignty," Greenley said in an interview.

The shift is translating into new demand for space-enabled capabilities such as earth observation satellites and secure communications networks used by defense and intelligence agencies. "Governments want increased earth observation of their territory and increased communications, and both of those are enabled by space," he said.

Canada, for example, has introduced a defense industrial strategy that prioritizes developing specialized technologies, including digital systems, sensors, autonomy and space.

MDA supplies many of the systems that governments rely on for those capabilities. The company builds satellites, robotic systems and data platforms that are central to the low orbit space. The company entered the year with a backlog of C$4.01 billion and expects revenue to grow 10%.

"Our outlook is on the conservative side for the year," Greenley said.

Policies such as Canada's are shortening procurement timelines for some programs, Greenley said. "The first phase, which might normally take two-to-three years, will be completed within five months," he added, while a second phase historically took two-to-five years. "There are opportunities to do that incredibly faster."

The shift toward greater defense spending and faster procurement is contributing to a growing pipeline of opportunities for MDA, which has outlined C$40 billion in potential programs over the next five years across government, defense and commercial markets--double the amount outlined a year ago.

The trend is also boosting results, with revenue up 51% in 2025. Its fourth quarter results on Wednesday also topped expectations.

Greenley expects demand for space-based systems to continue rising as governments invest more heavily in their own security, especially now that the U.S. is pulling back from its international role as security watchdog.

"That's caused every other country to need to focus more on itself--to stand up a little bit taller, have stronger defense, stronger security, stronger sovereignty," Greenley said. He expects space-based defense for both the earth and space are going to continue to increase through the next decade.

Write to Adriano Marchese at [adriano.marchese@wsj.com]

Expected Major Events for Friday

00:01/UK: Feb BRC-Sensormatic IQ Footfall Monitor

07:00/GER: Jan Manufacturing orders

07:00/GER: Jan Manufacturing turnover

07:00/UK: Feb Halifax House Price Index

09:30/UK: 4Q Bank of England external business statistics

13:30/US: Jan Advance Monthly Sales for Retail & Food Services

13:30/US: Feb U.S. Employment Report

15:00/CAN: Feb Ivey Purchasing Managers Index

20:00/US: Jan Consumer Credit

All times in GMT. Powered by Onclusive and Dow Jones.

Expected Earnings for Friday

Akita Drilling Ltd - Class A (AKT.A.T,AKT.B.T,AKTAF,AKTBF) is expected to report for 4Q.

Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp (AQN,AQN.T) is expected to report $0.04 for 4Q.

AltaGas Ltd (ALA.T) is expected to report $0.76 for 4Q.

Canterbury Park Holding Corp $(CPHC)$ is expected to report for 4Q.

Cohen & Co Inc (COHN) is expected to report for 4Q.

Ensign Energy Services Inc (ESI.T,ESVIF) is expected to report $-0.01 for 4Q.

Eve Holding Inc (EVEX) is expected to report $-0.16 for 4Q.

Genesco Inc $(GCO)$ is expected to report for 4Q.

Mammoth Energy Services Inc $(TUSK)$ is expected to report $-0.03 for 4Q.

Methode Electronics Inc (MEI) is expected to report $-0.30 for 3Q.

Noble Romans Inc (NROM) is expected to report for 4Q.

Oncolytics Biotech Inc (ONC-T,ONCY) is expected to report $-0.06 for 4Q.

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This article is a text version of a Wall Street Journal newsletter published earlier today.

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March 05, 2026 16:30 ET (21:30 GMT)

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