The Wall Street Journal is seeking its next bureau chief in Toronto, to oversee Canada’s corporate, markets, government and general news coverage for all platforms, at a time of political change and economic pain for the U.S.’s closest ally and biggest trading partner.
The collapse in the price of oil and the rout in the mining sector have hit Canada hard, contributing to the ouster last year of a Conservative government and the election of Justin Trudeau’s Liberal Party. The government has promised a slew of policy changes, from tougher climate rules to a return to Canada’s traditional peacekeeping role on the world stage, but that agenda, along with Trudeau’s honeymoon with voters may be jeopardized by the sluggish economy, a tension that will generate stories in the months to come.
Many of the best Canadian stories are classic corporate sagas, from the near-death experience of BlackBerry to the ongoing struggle for survival of Bombardier Inc., and the drama now swirling around Valeant. It’s been fertile ground for enterprise, ranging from feuds inside some of the country’s richest business families, and the struggle of its biggest bank, RBC, with money-laundering allegations in Latin America.
And of course, quirky Canada provides ample fodder for aheds, including recent ones about the summer grazing habits of Newfoundland sheep, the crumbling official residence of the Prime Minister and efforts to banish the Canada Goose, a national symbol, from Ottawa.
To explore the possibilities please respond to Adam Horvath at adam.horvath@wsj.com.
