Sorry this is late – I went to the Blue Bovine Steakhouse last night and didn’t have time to pack up the day. It’s an OK place. One big problem is that the gross incompetence shown by the City of Toronto in projects of any size has manifested itself in a virtually total lack of signage in Union Station, where the restaurant is located. After arriving early, I wandered around the enormous structure for a good twenty minutes, looking for something that looked like it might be the place or at least a map of the facility before giving up and asking a security guard, who directed me. BB should include a map on its website! It’s located near the north-east corner of the ground floor, by the way – but is so high-end that it doesn’t have any signage to announce itself, so I was gazing in bafflement at only the second map (the first one didn’t show my destination) I had found during my ordeal when my guest came out of the restaurant to grab me and confessed that he’d gotten lost as well.
Anyway, the place follows the unfortunate trend of Toronto steakhouses (by which I mean Jacob’s) of adopting the “Industrial Cafeteria” style of seating plans, presumably on the grounds that the more people you can conceivably cram in per square foot, the better. I miss the Tom Jones and Carman’s more and more with every passing year.
It has also adopted Morton’s annoying habit in the greeting from the waiter: “We know you’re illiterate, so I’d like to show you the menu and explain how it works, and since you’re both obviously bumpkins who’ve never been to a restaurant before, I’d like to carefully explain what each item on the menu is.” I can’t stand it, but I pride myself on my placid and forgiving personality, so nobody was hospitalized.
The side-orders available were, we were assured, enormous and suitable for sharing. Well, perhaps, if you’re of extremely small stature. They were pretty skimpy for sharing – not much, if any, larger than a single serving. The mushrooms were good, but the onion rings could have been from any decent diner in Toronto.
The meat itself was excellent and well prepared. But I expect that.
The dessert menu appears to have been provided by Acme High-End Restaurant Dessert Menu Company: uninspiring. I am of the firm opinion that steakhouse dessert menus should be unusual and fun (I enjoy the banana splits at Barberians and had some great ‘bananas set on fire’ at Hy’s; I retain fond memories of the Apple Beignets at the Tom Jones), but this one just had about eight items from the “Things People Like When They’re Eating at Corporate Expense” column of Acme’s template. In partial mitigation, they offered Banana Crepes Flambee, but I wasn’t in the mood for crepes of any description.
All in all? Adequate. No more than that.
Canadian inflation ticked down a bit:
Canada’s annual inflation rate slowed to 2.7 per cent in April, matching analyst expectations and bolstering the case for the Bank of Canada to start cutting interest rates this summer.
Core measures of inflation, which strip out price movements, have also continued to trend lower.
Inflation has now fallen within the Bank of Canada’s target band of 1 per cent to 3 per cent for four consecutive months. The next interest rate announcement is on June 5.
…
For many renters, the cost-of-living emergency has already reached crisis point. Households without a mortgage have been falling behind on credit card and auto loan payments at increasing rates, according to the same report. That trend is likely driven by tenants struggling to keep up with rent, analysts say.And soaring rents are rapidly spreading to the last few affordable areas of the country. Alberta recorded annual rent inflation of 16.2 per cent in April, nearly twice the national rent inflation of 8.2 per cent, according to the Statscan data.
And a different rental survey showed double-digit rent increases have also reached Saskatchewan. The province saw annual rental growth of 18 per cent in April, according to a report by real estate research firm Urbanation and rental platform Rentals.ca, which measures asking rents on vacant units.
But, as usual, the markets got excited anyway:
Swaps Market Before Announcement
Swaps Market After Announcement
| HIMIPref™ Preferred Indices These values reflect the December 2008 revision of the HIMIPref™ Indices Values are provisional and are finalized monthly |
|||||||
| Index | Mean Current Yield (at bid) |
Median YTW |
Median Average Trading Value |
Median Mod Dur (YTW) |
Issues | Day’s Perf. | Index Value |
| Ratchet | 0.00 % | 0.00 % | 0 | 0.00 | 0 | 0.0820 % | 2,331.8 |
| FixedFloater | 0.00 % | 0.00 % | 0 | 0.00 | 0 | 0.0820 % | 4,472.4 |
| Floater | 10.32 % | 10.61 % | 60,641 | 9.00 | 1 | 0.0820 % | 2,577.5 |
| OpRet | 0.00 % | 0.00 % | 0 | 0.00 | 0 | -0.6690 % | 3,453.5 |
| SplitShare | 4.87 % | 6.83 % | 34,127 | 1.38 | 8 | -0.6690 % | 4,124.2 |
| Interest-Bearing | 0.00 % | 0.00 % | 0 | 0.00 | 0 | -0.6690 % | 3,217.8 |
| Perpetual-Premium | 0.00 % | 0.00 % | 0 | 0.00 | 0 | -0.2023 % | 2,690.9 |
| Perpetual-Discount | 6.38 % | 6.57 % | 50,415 | 13.09 | 27 | -0.2023 % | 2,934.3 |
| FixedReset Disc | 5.23 % | 7.10 % | 126,293 | 12.25 | 57 | 0.0040 % | 2,576.3 |
| Insurance Straight | 6.24 % | 6.43 % | 55,173 | 13.23 | 21 | -0.0309 % | 2,908.1 |
| FloatingReset | 8.95 % | 9.23 % | 27,580 | 10.10 | 2 | 0.7485 % | 2,839.6 |
| FixedReset Prem | 6.95 % | 6.57 % | 213,167 | 3.07 | 2 | -0.1971 % | 2,520.8 |
| FixedReset Bank Non | 0.00 % | 0.00 % | 0 | 0.00 | 0 | 0.0040 % | 2,633.5 |
| FixedReset Ins Non | 5.05 % | 6.91 % | 83,592 | 13.03 | 14 | -0.3385 % | 2,813.6 |
| Performance Highlights | |||
| Issue | Index | Change | Notes |
| BN.PF.E | FixedReset Disc | -2.11 % | YTW SCENARIO Maturity Type : Limit Maturity Maturity Date : 2054-05-21 Maturity Price : 18.06 Evaluated at bid price : 18.06 Bid-YTW : 8.55 % |
| BN.PF.I | FixedReset Disc | -1.97 % | YTW SCENARIO Maturity Type : Limit Maturity Maturity Date : 2054-05-21 Maturity Price : 22.06 Evaluated at bid price : 22.41 Bid-YTW : 8.03 % |
| FFH.PR.I | FixedReset Disc | -1.51 % | YTW SCENARIO Maturity Type : Limit Maturity Maturity Date : 2054-05-21 Maturity Price : 18.22 Evaluated at bid price : 18.22 Bid-YTW : 8.57 % |
| CU.PR.G | Perpetual-Discount | -1.39 % | YTW SCENARIO Maturity Type : Limit Maturity Maturity Date : 2054-05-21 Maturity Price : 17.75 Evaluated at bid price : 17.75 Bid-YTW : 6.37 % |
| BN.PF.J | FixedReset Disc | -1.33 % | YTW SCENARIO Maturity Type : Limit Maturity Maturity Date : 2054-05-21 Maturity Price : 21.92 Evaluated at bid price : 22.30 Bid-YTW : 7.57 % |
| PWF.PR.P | FixedReset Disc | -1.29 % | YTW SCENARIO Maturity Type : Limit Maturity Maturity Date : 2054-05-21 Maturity Price : 15.32 Evaluated at bid price : 15.32 Bid-YTW : 7.95 % |
| RY.PR.J | FixedReset Disc | -1.28 % | YTW SCENARIO Maturity Type : Limit Maturity Maturity Date : 2054-05-21 Maturity Price : 22.62 Evaluated at bid price : 23.15 Bid-YTW : 6.74 % |
| PWF.PR.Z | Perpetual-Discount | -1.20 % | YTW SCENARIO Maturity Type : Limit Maturity Maturity Date : 2054-05-21 Maturity Price : 19.78 Evaluated at bid price : 19.78 Bid-YTW : 6.59 % |
| CM.PR.Q | FixedReset Disc | -1.17 % | YTW SCENARIO Maturity Type : Limit Maturity Maturity Date : 2054-05-21 Maturity Price : 22.40 Evaluated at bid price : 22.85 Bid-YTW : 6.79 % |
| CU.PR.E | Perpetual-Discount | -1.08 % | YTW SCENARIO Maturity Type : Limit Maturity Maturity Date : 2054-05-21 Maturity Price : 19.29 Evaluated at bid price : 19.29 Bid-YTW : 6.39 % |
| CU.PR.J | Perpetual-Discount | -1.07 % | YTW SCENARIO Maturity Type : Limit Maturity Maturity Date : 2054-05-21 Maturity Price : 18.45 Evaluated at bid price : 18.45 Bid-YTW : 6.47 % |
| CU.PR.C | FixedReset Disc | -1.04 % | YTW SCENARIO Maturity Type : Limit Maturity Maturity Date : 2054-05-21 Maturity Price : 20.05 Evaluated at bid price : 20.05 Bid-YTW : 7.38 % |
| FFH.PR.D | FloatingReset | -1.01 % | YTW SCENARIO Maturity Type : Limit Maturity Maturity Date : 2054-05-21 Maturity Price : 22.20 Evaluated at bid price : 22.47 Bid-YTW : 9.23 % |
| SLF.PR.D | Insurance Straight | 1.11 % | YTW SCENARIO Maturity Type : Limit Maturity Maturity Date : 2054-05-21 Maturity Price : 19.06 Evaluated at bid price : 19.06 Bid-YTW : 5.94 % |
| SLF.PR.C | Insurance Straight | 1.17 % | YTW SCENARIO Maturity Type : Limit Maturity Maturity Date : 2054-05-21 Maturity Price : 19.00 Evaluated at bid price : 19.00 Bid-YTW : 5.96 % |
| PVS.PR.K | SplitShare | 1.21 % | YTW SCENARIO Maturity Type : Hard Maturity Maturity Date : 2029-05-31 Maturity Price : 25.00 Evaluated at bid price : 23.00 Bid-YTW : 6.32 % |
| MFC.PR.K | FixedReset Ins Non | 1.40 % | YTW SCENARIO Maturity Type : Limit Maturity Maturity Date : 2054-05-21 Maturity Price : 22.49 Evaluated at bid price : 23.31 Bid-YTW : 6.41 % |
| TD.PF.J | FixedReset Disc | 2.34 % | YTW SCENARIO Maturity Type : Limit Maturity Maturity Date : 2054-05-21 Maturity Price : 22.88 Evaluated at bid price : 24.05 Bid-YTW : 6.48 % |
| RY.PR.N | Perpetual-Discount | 2.92 % | YTW SCENARIO Maturity Type : Limit Maturity Maturity Date : 2054-05-21 Maturity Price : 22.64 Evaluated at bid price : 22.90 Bid-YTW : 5.37 % |
| SLF.PR.J | FloatingReset | 3.05 % | YTW SCENARIO Maturity Type : Limit Maturity Maturity Date : 2054-05-21 Maturity Price : 17.91 Evaluated at bid price : 17.91 Bid-YTW : 9.10 % |
| IFC.PR.A | FixedReset Ins Non | 3.76 % | YTW SCENARIO Maturity Type : Limit Maturity Maturity Date : 2054-05-21 Maturity Price : 19.30 Evaluated at bid price : 19.30 Bid-YTW : 6.93 % |
| MFC.PR.Q | FixedReset Ins Non | 4.02 % | YTW SCENARIO Maturity Type : Limit Maturity Maturity Date : 2054-05-21 Maturity Price : 22.58 Evaluated at bid price : 23.45 Bid-YTW : 6.52 % |
| CM.PR.P | FixedReset Disc | 4.05 % | YTW SCENARIO Maturity Type : Limit Maturity Maturity Date : 2054-05-21 Maturity Price : 22.16 Evaluated at bid price : 22.85 Bid-YTW : 6.38 % |
| BN.PR.Z | FixedReset Disc | 6.58 % | YTW SCENARIO Maturity Type : Limit Maturity Maturity Date : 2054-05-21 Maturity Price : 20.25 Evaluated at bid price : 20.25 Bid-YTW : 8.18 % |
| Volume Highlights | |||
| Issue | Index | Shares Traded |
Notes |
| TD.PF.M | FixedReset Disc | 53,177 | YTW SCENARIO Maturity Type : Limit Maturity Maturity Date : 2054-05-21 Maturity Price : 24.03 Evaluated at bid price : 24.89 Bid-YTW : 7.28 % |
| CU.PR.E | Perpetual-Discount | 34,800 | YTW SCENARIO Maturity Type : Limit Maturity Maturity Date : 2054-05-21 Maturity Price : 19.29 Evaluated at bid price : 19.29 Bid-YTW : 6.39 % |
| TD.PF.A | FixedReset Disc | 33,105 | YTW SCENARIO Maturity Type : Limit Maturity Maturity Date : 2054-05-21 Maturity Price : 22.86 Evaluated at bid price : 23.65 Bid-YTW : 6.19 % |
| TD.PF.C | FixedReset Disc | 32,220 | YTW SCENARIO Maturity Type : Limit Maturity Maturity Date : 2054-05-21 Maturity Price : 22.07 Evaluated at bid price : 22.69 Bid-YTW : 6.44 % |
| IFC.PR.G | FixedReset Ins Non | 30,200 | YTW SCENARIO Maturity Type : Limit Maturity Maturity Date : 2054-05-21 Maturity Price : 22.57 Evaluated at bid price : 23.44 Bid-YTW : 6.65 % |
| BMO.PR.S | FixedReset Disc | 15,907 | YTW SCENARIO Maturity Type : Limit Maturity Maturity Date : 2054-05-21 Maturity Price : 23.91 Evaluated at bid price : 24.97 Bid-YTW : 5.98 % |
| There were 4 other index-included issues trading in excess of 10,000 shares. | |||
| Wide Spread Highlights | ||
| Issue | Index | Quote Data and Yield Notes |
| IFC.PR.K | Insurance Straight | Quote: 20.78 – 22.00 Spot Rate : 1.2200 Average : 0.9000 YTW SCENARIO |
| RY.PR.M | FixedReset Disc | Quote: 22.61 – 23.45 Spot Rate : 0.8400 Average : 0.5757 YTW SCENARIO |
| GWO.PR.P | Insurance Straight | Quote: 21.20 – 21.90 Spot Rate : 0.7000 Average : 0.5140 YTW SCENARIO |
| MFC.PR.I | FixedReset Ins Non | Quote: 23.75 – 24.20 Spot Rate : 0.4500 Average : 0.3088 YTW SCENARIO |
| BN.PR.R | FixedReset Disc | Quote: 16.46 – 17.20 Spot Rate : 0.7400 Average : 0.5999 YTW SCENARIO |
| CU.PR.C | FixedReset Disc | Quote: 20.05 – 20.45 Spot Rate : 0.4000 Average : 0.2668 YTW SCENARIO |
I enjoyed that, you missed your calling as the irreverent food critic. Looking forward to the next serving :-).