Business: 5 things to watch

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Five things to watch this week in Canadian business:

Trudeau in Japan: Prime Minister Justin Trudeau heads to the Land of the Rising Sun where he will attend the G7 summit. Expect Trudeau to continue preaching the need for stimulus to revitalize a global economy that has experienced feeble growth.

Lowe's, meet Rona: Sylvain Prud'homme, CEO of Lowe's Canada, speaks with the news media Tuesday at the company's head office in Boucherville, Que., following the closing of the U.S.-based company's takeover of Rona. The acquisition is likely to shake up the highly competitive home improvement business.

Interest rates: The Bank of Canada announces its benchmark interest rate Wednesday. While expectations of a change to the 0.5 per cent rate are virtually non-existent, policy-makers, investors and others will be focusing on the bank's outlook on the economy and reading the tea leaves for clues as to when the central bank might move on rates.

Big Banks: Four of the five big banks report second-quarter results this week, kicking off with the Bank of Montreal on Wednesday, followed by the Royal Bank, TD and CIBC on Thursday. Often perceived as a staid sector, the banking industry is facing a number of headwinds including sluggish economic growth, concerns over oilpatch loan losses and the rising threat from financial technology companies.

Defence and security: The Canadian Association of Defence and Security Industries hosts a trade show in Ottawa on Wednesday and Thursday. Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan will be among those speaking at the show, which will feature more than 330 Canadian defence companies.