‘Turmoil is always terrible news’: Bay Street demands quick resolution to Liberal drama

financialpost.com:

The resignation of federal Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland was met with shock and concern in Canada’s business community Monday, with some leaders worried that political infighting at the highest levels of the Liberal government could distract from the country’s economic problems and preparation for a potential trade battle with the United States.

“Freeland’s resignation sends a powerful signal: deep divisions exist among politicians on how to tackle Canada’s growing economic challenges,” said Matthew Holmes, chief of public policy at the Canadian Chamber of Commerce.

“The next finance minister, and by extension this government, faces a critical choice: double down on tax-and-spend policies that burden Canadians and businesses, or take bold steps to restore our economic vitality and be the unapologetic champion of Canada’s best interests.”

In a letter to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau that she posted on social media Monday, Freeland said her decision hinged in part on differing views on how to position the country to face incoming U.S. president Donald Trump‘s threat of steep tariffs on Canadian products. She stated her own view that the government must eschew “costly political gimmicks” to keep its fiscal “powder dry” for a potential tariff war, an apparent jab at the government’s recent move to send $250 rebate cheques to millions of Canadians.

See my letter to the Prime Minister below // Veuillez trouver ma lettre au Premier ministre ci-dessous pic.twitter.com/NMMMcXUh7A

During a news conference in Toronto on Friday afternoon, Freeland had offered reassuring words that the government had a plan to deal with the tariff threats and other nationalistic policies. But that same day, Trudeau demanded she step down as