A flurry of headlines jostled Canadian yields on Thursday, but the biggest news came after the market's close. Trump signed an order lifting his seat-of-the-pants tariff on Canadian imports from 25% to 35% (CUSMA goods are still exempted).

The President again pinned heavy fentanyl blame on Canada. That's despite overwhelming data that we're not the real problem. Apparently, data counts as fake news if it's inconvenient.

Trump also pointed fingers at Canada’s tariff retaliation, as if we were the ones who threw the first snowball.

Reuters reports that PM Carney tried to reach the President, but had no luck. Carney wrote on X that he was disappointed with the Donald. On the bright side, he noted that our CUSMA exception gives Canada "one of the lowest" effective tariff rates around.

That, of course, raises the multi-billion-dollar question: what fresh hell awaits when CUSMA expires next June?

Wednesday managed to disappoint borrowers and bond bulls equally. Market reactions to central bank outlooks essentially squashed hopes of a September easing by the BoC.

Fed policy decisions often ripple northward to Canada's mortgage market, but Wednesday's announcement didn't make many waves for rates.

What happens in the next few months, however, could be a different story. There's every indication that the Fed will remain on pause longer. That and more trade clarity could limit any downside for Canadian mortgage rates.

With this in mind, we broke down the Fed's announcement into eight essential takeaways for Canadian borrowers.

The Bank of Canada didn't budge on rates today, but it made its intentions more transparent. At this point, it's leaning towards keeping rates steady or gently lowering them later. Team Macklem has no plans to reach for the rate-hike lever.

The Bank's key statements, like the gem below, echo this stance clearly:

“If a weakening economy puts further downward pressure on inflation … there may be a need for a reduction in the policy interest rate.”
—BoC Statement, July 30, 2025

Despite that, Canadian yields are unchanged since the 9:45 a.m. ET announcement. What does this mean?

Yields took a gentle slide on Tuesday, heading into Wednesday's central bank doubleheader. The Bank of Canada bats first with its 9:45 a.m. announcement, with the Fed stepping up to the plate at 2:00 p.m. ET. Spoiler alert: rates shouldn't budge, but brace yourself for outlook twists hidden within their messaging.

Monday's bond trading was so tranquil that we thought our screen had frozen. Ahead of major economic announcements—of which there are many this week—you expect light trading, but this was monk-quiet.

That said, here's what pressured Canada's 5-year yield on Monday, and in which direction.

First National Financial, a non-bank powerhouse that's one of Canada's biggest broker lenders, plans to sell a controlling stake to private equity in a $2.9 billion deal.

The two groups signing the cheque are:

• Global alternative asset manager Brookfield Asset Management Ltd., which owns private mortgage insurer Sagen and developer Brookfield Residential, and
• Private equity firm Birch Hill Equity Partners Management Inc., which previously bought HomeEquity Bank.

If you’re a mortgage broker, this is capitalism giving you an expensive nod—the kind of news that underscores broker value.

Friday brought fresh trade anxiety when Trump casually floated the idea of ditching talks and slapping Canada with ongoing tariffs. But despite the threats sending a chill through Canadian markets, yields remain in an uptrend.