GHY Tradelines

(CTV News – The Canadian Press)

Changes to Canada’s drug patent system proposed by the European Union would add about $2.8 billion a year in costs to the country’s prescription drug bill, a new study concludes. The study released Monday was commissioned by the Canadian Generic Pharmaceutical Association, which represents Canada’s generic pharmaceutical industry.

The EU has tabled proposals as part of a Canada-EU trade deal being negotiated that would lengthen the period of market exclusivity for brand-name drugs in Canada, a release on the study said. That deal would result in the most extensive structural protection for innovative drugs of any country in the world, the study found, but would not lead to a substantial increase in investment by brand-name drug companies in Canada. Read more here.

(Bloomberg – Bob Willis)

The U.S. trade deficit probably widened in December for the first time in four months as the cost of imported oil climbed, economists said before a report this week.

The gap grew to $40.2 billion from the $38.3 billion shortfall in November, according to the median of 58 estimates in a Bloomberg News survey ahead of the Commerce Department’s Feb. 11 report. Other figures may show consumer confidence climbed this month and claims for jobless benefits fell.

In addition to oil, imports may have also been boosted by the need to rebuild inventories at the end of the year after American consumers spent at a faster clip in the fourth quarter. At the same time, manufacturers like Caterpillar Inc. are enjoying sales gains overseas as demand picks up from customers in emerging economies, including China and Brazil.

“In order to rebuild inventories of consumer goods, you would expect to see stronger import growth,” said Jay Bryson, a global economist at Wells Fargo Securities Inc. in Charlotte, North Carolina. “Export growth remains pretty strong as most trading partners are experiencing solid rates of growth.” Read more here.

(Macleans.ca – Luiza Ch. Savage)

At a meeting [Friday] in Washington, President Barack Obama and Prime Minister Stephen Harper launched a “Shared vision for perimeter security and economic competitiveness”. They announced that a group of senior government officials from both countries would form a “Beyond the Border Working Group.” The group will look for ways to streamline border security while creating a shared “perimeter security” around both countries. In addition, a Regulatory Cooperation Council will look for ways to coordinate and harmonize regulations in order to ease red tape for companies that do business in both countries.

After the leaders’ meeting, I spoke with U.S. ambassador to Canada, David Jacobson, about what this all means. Read more here.

[Ed. Note: There is nothing of any meaningful substance whatsoever in the ambassador’s responses.]